Criminal Challenges of Removal of Organs from Living Donors for Transplantation

Organ transplantation in Iran like many other countries is accepted as the last therapeutic method for patients with end-stage organ failure. Sources of transplantable organs include living and deceased/brain dead donors, among which a considerable number of organs for transplant are obtained from living donors. Removal of organs from deceased and brain dead donors for transplantation is allowed by "Transplantation of organs of dead or brain dead patients" Act (2000); however, as for removal of organs from living donors, no explicit regulations for prescribing this behavior have been passed, and the former regulation concerning implied prescription of this behavior (article 42(3) of General Penal Act- 1973) has explicitly been abolished. Therefore, considering the fact that there is no difference between the behavior "removal of organs of living donors" and physical element of crimes, and that victim’s consent and perpetrator’s motivation have no effect on the nature of criminal behavior, this behavior is initially regarded as crime and the likely legal acts for justifying it will be articles of 158 and 152 of Islamic Penal Act (2013). Upon reflecting on article 158, it becomes evident that removal of organs from living donors for transplantation is outside the regulations inclusion of this article. Although the mentioned behavior has been within article 152 inclusion by interpreting this article based on objective observations and has caused acquittal of the culprit, referring to this act to justify the mentioned behavior, on the one hand, faces some obstacles, and on the other hand, has unacceptable results and many unfavorable consequences that demands that the legislator enter this subject and determine its sentence together with defining a coherent legal system for organ transplant. Please cite this article as: Mirmohammad Sadeghi H, Sabouripour M, Khosravi A. Criminal Challenges of Removal of Organs from Living Donors for Transplantation. Iran J Med Law 2019; 13(48): 7-29.