NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      DETROIT (CWNews.com) - Michigan voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to legalize assisted suicide, even as they rejected the gubernatorial bid of assisted suicide activist Jack Kevorkian's lawyer, Geoffrey Fieger.

      The Proposal B measure to legalize assisted suicide in the state was defeated 71 percent to 29 percent, while incumbent GOP Gov. John Engler defeated Fieger 62 percent to 35 percent in unofficial results. Opposition to Proposal B was led by a coalition of religious groups including the Catholic Conference of Michigan which lent support including more than $2 million.

      Meanwhile, voters in Washington and Colorado narrowly defeated ballot questions that would have banned partial-birth abortions, although Colorado voters approved a proposal to require abortionists to notify parents when a minor seeks an abortion. In Alaska and Hawaii, voters approved measures that would lead to a ban on same-sex marriages. The Hawaii proposal allows the legislature to pass a ban after the state Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriages must be allowed unless the state provided compelling reasons to ban them.