Mr. Smythe was the owner of the website Terminal Decision, through which people could obtain information about possible methods of suicide.
He strongly believed in the rights of people under the First Amendment to speak about whatever they wished without government interference. He also believed that right extended to the choice of ending one's life. He once said that he would "dance in hell" before shutting down his site.
When subpoenaed for information from his website regarding the deaths of several young people in a car-train accident, he refused to cooperate and testified before a grand jury convened by ADA Ron Carver. The jury, however, voted to indict him on four counts of manslaughter. He accepted a plea bargain from Carver, shutting down his website in exchange for the information requested and no jail time. (CI: "No Exit")