Texas Nurse Charged With Murder After Patient's Death
When you're in the hospital, you entrust your care to nurses, doctors, and other staff. It's their job to do what they can to restore your health, ease your pain, and treat your symptoms. In many ways, you put our life in their hands and trust that whatever substance they're pumping into the IV or pill they're having you swallow will help you in one way or another. That's why the news of a Texas nurse charged with a patient's murder is so jarring.
Charged for Murdering Veteran
William George Davis was arrested April 10 in the August 2017 death of Christopher Greenaway, 47, a medical transport pilot and decorated veteran. According to police, he is also likely to be charged for harming patients in six other cases at the same hospital, Christus Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, Texas. Authorities have not yet detailed exactly what they believe Davis did to the patients, but have said they have no indications that this was a case of assisted suicide.
Nurse Fired in February
The hospital notified law enforcement in January about their suspicions regarding Davis, noting that patients had been "experiencing unexplained symptoms inconsistent with their treatment and recovery." There are also documented incidents of Davis entering the rooms of patients who were not assigned to his care. In those cases, patients experienced "profound neurological events" despite otherwise successful treatment.
Davis was fired from the hospital in February and his nursing license was suspended in March. His suspension order states that Davis entered three patients' rooms at the hospital and "performed an intervention" that either killed or seriously harmed them. In the case of Greenaway's murder, a doctor retained by the Smith County DA's Office says he believes air had been deliberately introduced into the patient's IV.
Related Resources:
- Find Criminal Defense Lawyers Near You (FindLaw's Lawyer Directory)
- Wrongful Death Lawsuits Against Hospitals (FindLaw's Learn About the Law)
- Medical Malpractice: Who Can Be Sued? (FindLaw's Learn About the Law)
- What Is a Doctor's Duty of Care? (FindLaw's Learn About the Law)