Autoerotic asphyxiation is the practice of self-strangulation, typically by the use of a ligature, while masturbating. The decrease of blood to the brain is said to heighten the sexual pleasure. It is a highly dangerous practice that results in many deaths each year.
It is a popular subject in tabloids and celebrity gossip magazines, particularly when a celebrity dies as a result of suicide or other mysterious circumstances. Such was reputedly the case with the deaths of Jerzy Kosinski (in 1991) and Michael Hutchence (in 1997), though no evidence to support the claim was produced in either case.
The death in 1984 of Stephen Milligan, the British Conservative MP for Eastleigh, was a case of auto-erotic asphyxiation combined with self-bondage. This combination is particularly lethal.
An accidental death due to autoerotic asphyxiation is an important plot element in the film The Ruling Class (1972), starring Peter O'Toole. It is also important in Rising Sun, a movie starring Sean Connery and Wesley Snipes, based on the book by Michael Crichton.
The book Acquisition of Power by Erika Barr (ISBN 1591293073) touches upon this subject.
Recent court cases have come to varied results as to whether the unintentional death resulting from autoerotic asphyxiation falls under the "self-induced injury" clause of standard life insurance policies, which prevents payouts for suicide. In June of 2003, one US court said the intent was not death and therefore the case was an accident [1], while another in August 2003 said it does technically fall within the terms since death is the logical result of asphyxiation [1].
See also: autoerotic fatalities
