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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), close to eight hundred thousand (800,000) people die as a result of suicide every year(1) and for every successful suicide, many more people have attempted suicide. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines suicide as ‗the act of killing oneself, delibeinitiated and performed by the person concerned in the full knowledge or expectation of its fatal outcome‘ Suicide is thus, a serious public health problem which does not just occur in high-income countries but also in low and middle income countries. A suicide attempt refers to a situation where an individual tries to commit suicide but survives. Causes of suicide and suicide attempts are numerous but they include depression, mental disorder, alcohol or drug abuse, hopelessness, previous suicide attempt, isolation and lack of social support, aggressive tendencies, impulsivity, history of trauma or abuse, acute emotional distress, major physical or chronic illnesses and family history of suicide. In a bid to curb the menace of attempted suicide, different steps have been taken by both government and non-governmental institutions. The law, as a tool of social engineering has also been involved by punishing persons for attempted suicide. However, the continuous increase in the rates of suicide and unsuccessful suicide attempts despite the law against and the punishment for attempted suicide in Nigeria raises an important question as to whether or not the legislative step is really an effective measure of combating a social ill that questions the value of life and the essence of socialization. Has the criminalization helped in reducing the rate of attempted suicide over the years? Is imprisonment the appropriate remedy or punishment for the attempted suicide ―convicts‖? In a bid to answer these questions, this paper considers the history of attempted suicide, codification of the offence, the offence under the Nigerian Criminal Code, causes of suicide attempts, and the justification or otherwise for its criminalization as well as the suitability or otherwise of the punishment stipulated for the offence of attempted suicide. Recommendations are proffered.
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