The Nation - News from May 10, 1985
A 75-year-old man who used a mercy-killing defense was convicted of first-degree murder for shooting his ailing wife and was sentenced to life in prison. Roswell Gilbert had testified in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., that he shot his wife, Emily, 73, out of compassion because of her suffering from progressive senility caused by Alzheimer’s disease and osteoporosis, a painful bone disintegration. Judge Thomas Coker Jr. immediately sentenced Gilbert to life in prison, with a 25-year minimum, mandatory term. Defense lawyer Harry Gulkin said Gilbert would appeal.
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