Feds Raid Home of 91-Year-Old Suicide Kit Maker

May 26, 2011— -- On Wednesday morning, 91-year-old Sharlotte Hydorn answered a knock on her door to find nearly a dozen FBI agents outside. The agents reportedly raided the suicide kit maker's home, seizing her computer, sewing machine and kit supplies.

FBI Agent Darrell Foxworth would not confirm the contents of the warrant, but Hydorn told The Associated Press that she was being accused of mail fraud.

Hydorn, of El Cajon, Calif., was thrown into the spotlight just a few months ago after a 29-year-old Oregonian named Nick Klonoski used one of her kits to end his life in December. Klonoski had ordered the simple kit, which contained a hood and tube, through the mail.

Earlier this month, Oregon senators unanimously voted in favor of passing a bill that would ban the sale or marketing of suicide kits.

Klonoski reportedly was not terminally ill and would not have qualified for lethal prescriptions available to eligible Oregon residents under the Death With Dignity Act. Oregon is one of three states -- Washington and Montana are the others -- in which assisted suicide is legal.

Hydorn said the homemade kits, which she has been selling for four years, are intended to assist the death of those who are terminally ill or in severe chronic pain. But anyone can request the $60 kit, and she does not screen her clients before sending them a kit.

But Hydorn remains unapologetic about Klonoski's death.

"I cannot take all the sadness of the world on my shoulders," said Hydorn. "I feel so sorry for the mama, but I'm not at fault. That's his choice, not my choice."

Business doubled after Klonoski's death made headlines, according to Hydorn, and she plans on continuing to grow her small company.

Hydorn first became interested in assisted suicide after watching metastatic colon cancer take over her husband's body in 1977. He died in the hospital, instead of at home, where Hydorn said he belonged.

"It's always been in my mind that people should have the right to die at home with a family around them, not in a strange place surrounded by strangers," she said.

Hydorn looked into the legal side of things before starting her mail-order business to make sure she would not be implicated in any potential legal woes.

"The attorney told me, 'You're just the bag lady,'" she said. "So long as I'm not present when death occurs, and I'm not telling them to shut up and pull the bag down already, I am not accountable."

Hydorn Meets Humphry

Three years after her husband's death, Hydorn met Derek Humphry, author of "Final Exit" and founder of the Hemlock Society, which supports the right to die. Hydorn believed in Humphry's mission and began to volunteer, and, ultimately, became a board member of the organization.

"I assume her purpose is Kevorkian-like-- to help people with terminal illness feel empowered," said Dr. Ken Robbins, clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin and director of psychiatry at nearby Stoughton Hospital.

But even if a person believes assisted suicide is ethical, Robbins said it is essential for a clinician to thoroughly screen patients to be sure they are not suicidal because of depression.

"You have to make sure they don't want to end their life because they are depressed, because depression is treatable." said Robbins. "If the person goes through a good evaluation with a clinician, it's not that hard to decipher."

"If they have depression that is temporary due to the illness, or from the mental condition itself, part of the symptom is to feel hopeless," said Robbins. "People have to know that it will get better through treatment."

"For people in emotional pain, I don't know how anyone could argue that it is ethically appropriate to help them commit suicide," Robbins said.

Hydorn said people call or write to her to request a kit, which includes a customized plastic bag and a tube intended to be connected to a tank of inert gas. Oftentimes customers provide little detail of their intentions. They usually tell her their name, the number of desired kits and the address where they'd like the kit to be sent. They enclose a check for the appropriate amount and sometimes include extra postage if they want the package delivered overnight or sent internationally.

Hydorn said she has received requests for kits from all over the world.