Man sentenced to six years for smothering ailing wife after suicide promise

Douglas Smith, 75, was sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter for the death of his wife, Iris Dodd, 72, in Kingsport, Nova Scotia. The court heard that Dodd, suffering from a stroke, blindness, arthritis, fibromyalgia and recent pneumonia, feared being placed in a long-term care facility and asked Smith to help her overdose. After a night of discussion, she secured his promise to arrange the pills, but the following morning Smith smothered her with a pillow.

He turned himself in at the local RCMP station, later calling 911 to report the death. During sentencing, Crown prosecutor Daniel Rideout emphasized that, while Smith acted out of compassion, he still broke the law and had alternatives. The case highlights the intersection of severe health decline, housing insecurity, and assisted-suicide debates in Nova Scotia.