Watt
10sparks

Attempted suicide was once a crime

The claim that an 1845 British law prescribed death for attempted suicide is incorrect. In England and Wales, suicide and unsuccessful attempts remained crimes under common law for a long time; the Suicide Act 1961 abolished that rule. This is a history of criminalization, but it does not substantiate a specific “1845 law” or automatic execution.

England and Wales decriminalized suicide in 1961.