Article 161 of the current Criminal Code provides for liability for a murder committed at the request of the victim.
The crime is described as follows: “Murder of a person having reached the age of eighteen by that person’s consciously and voluntarily expressed request with a purpose of relieving him/her from strong physical pain or suffering shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of maximum four years”.
It is noteworthy that the crime shall be committed at the request of the victim. In other words, the offender must ensure that the victim fully understands the essence of his/her request. At the same time, when taking the victim’s life the perpetrator shall particularly pursue the purpose of relieving the victim of severe physical pain or suffering.
According to the previous Code, the committal of a crime due to difficult life circumstances or out of compassion was considered a mitigating circumstance. And a murder committed out of compassion was qualified as an ordinary murder.The crime committed out of compassion is now a separate crime.