Reta Mays

Last updated

Reta Mays
Born
Reta Phyllis Mays

(1975-06-16) June 16, 1975 (age 49)
Reynoldsville, West Virginia, U.S.
Conviction(s) Second degree murder (18 U.S.C. § 1111) (7 counts)
Assault with intent to commit murder (18 U.S.C. § 113)
Criminal penalty7 life terms plus 20 years
Details
Victims8+
Span of crimes
July 2017 –June 2018
CountryUnited States
State(s) West Virginia
Date apprehended
July 14, 2020
Imprisoned at FCI Aliceville, Alabama [1]

Reta Phyllis Mays (born June 16, 1975) [2] is an American serial killer who murdered at least seven elderly military veterans over a span of eleven months, between July 2017 and June 2018, by injecting them with lethal doses of insulin while she was employed as a nursing assistant at the Louis A. Johnson Veterans Medical Center, in Clarksburg, West Virginia. On May 11, 2021, Mays was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences for the murders, plus 20 years for one count of assault with intent to commit murder. [3]

Contents

Background

Reta Mays was born in Reynoldsville, West Virginia [4] in 1975. She was a United States Army West Virginia National Guard veteran who served from November 2000 to April 2001 and again from February 2003 to May 2004, when she deployed to Iraq and Kuwait with the 1092nd Engineer Battalion. [5] Prior to beginning her employment as a nursing assistant at the Louis A. Johnson Veterans Medical Center, Mays had worked as a corrections officer at the West Virginia Department of Corrections at North Central Regional Jail in Greenwood, West Virginia, between 2005 and 2012. [6] In 2013, Mays was one of several defendants in a lawsuit that was brought by an inmate incarcerated at the jail who alleged that he had been repeatedly beaten by Mays and other correction officers. The lawsuit was dismissed on summary judgment. [7]

Mays was a longtime member of Monroe Chapel United Methodist, a small church approximately twenty minutes outside Clarksburg in Lost Creek. [8]

Murders and investigation

In June 2015, Mays began working as a nursing assistant at the Louis A. Johnson Veterans Medical Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia, with no certification or license to care for patients. [5] Nursing assistants at the VAMC are not qualified or authorized to administer any medication to patients, including insulin. [2] [9] Mays was assigned to work overnight shifts on Ward 3A of the hospital's medical surgical unit in July 2017, when elderly patients began suffering mysterious acute drops in their blood sugar level. [6] Over the course of eleven months, hospital staff eventually attributed the deaths of several patients on the ward to hypoglycemia. Many of the deaths were of individuals who were not insulin-dependent. Four of the deaths occurred within sixteen days. One patient, Archie Edgell, an 84-year-old Korean War veteran, initially suffered a drop in his blood sugar to 24 (a reading of less than 70 is low and can be harmful.) [10] He was stabilized by staff, only to die after another plummet of his blood sugar a short time later. [7] An autopsy later found that Edgell had been injected four times. [4] The hospital began an internal investigation of eleven deaths. [11] Mays was fired from the hospital in June 2018, and the investigation was turned over to the Inspector General for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. [7]

The investigation into the deaths of the elderly military veterans began in June 2018 and lasted over two years. Mays remained free; she was questioned three times during the course of the investigation. Each time, she denied any involvement in the deaths. Mays's second interview was conducted by a special agent from the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and lasted five hours. By then, investigators had built up a strong circumstantial case against Mays, including her internet search history of female serial killers; her Netflix viewing of the series Nurses Who Kill, one episode of which focused on insulin killings; and phone calls made by Mays to her husband, Gordon, who was serving time in jail for child pornography charges [4] in which she bemoaned having to sit with a patient that she wanted to "freaking strangle." Investigators stated that call had been made the morning after one of the blood sugar episodes. [12] During another call to her husband, Mays complained of soreness in her arms from having to do compressions on a patient who, she felt, had "no quality of life", adding that if the staff "would have just said DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) he would have went to sleep when his sugar dropped down to 30." [12]

The investigation involved more than 300 interviews; the review of phone, social media, and computer records; the review of thousands of pages of medical records and charts; hours of consulting with forensic experts and endocrinologists; the exhumation of some of the bodies of those who were deemed to have died suspiciously; and the review of thousands of hospital staff and visitor records to assess their potential interactions with the deceased. [9] A "person of interest" was officially identified in the autumn of 2019; the person's name was not disclosed, but authorities later stated that Mays had been a person of interest from the beginning. [12]

Arrest, trial, and conviction

In July 2020, Mays was arrested and charged with the murders of eight individuals. The charges were later reduced to seven second-degree murders and one count of intent to commit murder involving the death of the 92-year-old United States Navy veteran Russell R. Posey Sr., who died two weeks after he had been injected with insulin. [7] Prosecutors stated that there were approximately twenty suspicious deaths while Mays worked at the hospital, but charges were brought only for the cases that were believed to have sufficient evidence. [7]

On July 14, 2020, Mays pleaded guilty in the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in Clarksburg to seven counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. [5] By pleading guilty to all of the charges, Mays waived the right to have the case presented to a grand jury. [5] Mays wept openly in court and admitted that she had murdered the patients. Mays offered no motive but claimed to be taking medication for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). [5] She was held in custody at the West Virginia Regional Jail and Correctional Facility until her sentencing. [13] An interview with Mays after her guilty plea was included in a report, released after the sentencing by the Department of Veterans Affairs' Office of Inspector General, that detailed deficiencies at the hospital. In it, she stated she administered that insulin to patients that she believed were suffering so that they could pass away "gently." She also stated that she had great stress and chaos in both her personal and professional life and that her actions gave her a sense of control. [14]

On May 11, 2021, Mays was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences, plus 20 years, during a three-hour-long hearing the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in Clarksburg by U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh. Mays is ineligible for parole. [15]

During the sentencing, Mays, in tears, gave a brief statement: "There’s no words I can say that can offer the families any comfort. I can only say I’m sorry for the pain I caused them and my family." [16] In addition to her sentence, Mays was ordered to pay $172,624.96 to the victims' families, the VA Hospital, Medicare, and insurance companies. [3] The judge, speaking directly to Mays, stated, "Several times your counsels made the point that you shouldn't be considered a monster. Respectfully, I disagree with that. You are the worst kind. You're the monster that no one sees coming." [17]

In July 2021, Mays was transferred to the low-security Federal Correctional Institution, Aliceville in Alabama. U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh had recommended that Mays be placed at Federal Medical Center, Carswell, in Fort Worth, Texas, so that she could receive mental health treatment there; the BOP ultimately assigned her to Aliceville. [18] [19] Since Mays' guilty pleas, the federal government has settled civil lawsuits with the families of 10 victims. [16]

Victims

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Cullen</span> American serial killer (born 1960)

Charles Edmund Cullen is an American serial killer. Cullen, a nurse, murdered dozens—possibly hundreds—of patients during a 16-year career spanning several New Jersey and Pennsylvania medical centers until being arrested in 2003. He confessed to committing as many as 40 murders at least 29 of which have been confirmed, though interviews with police, psychiatrists and journalists suggest he committed many more. Researchers who are intimately involved in the case believe Cullen may have murdered as many as 400 people. However, most murders cannot be confirmed due to lack of records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristen Gilbert</span> American serial murderer and former nurse

Kristen Heather Gilbert is an American serial killer and former nurse who was convicted of four murders and two attempted murders of patients admitted to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Northampton, Massachusetts. She induced cardiac arrest in patients by injecting their intravenous therapy bags with lethal doses of epinephrine, commonly known as adrenaline, which is an untraceable heart stimulant. She would then respond to the coded emergency, often resuscitating the patients herself. Prosecutors said Gilbert was on duty for about half of the 350 deaths that occurred at the hospital from when she started working there in 1989, and that the odds of this merely being a coincidence was 1 in 100 million. However, her only confirmed victims were Stanley Jagodowski, Henry Hudon, Kenneth Cutting, and Edward Skwira.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Archer-Gilligan</span> American serial killer

Amy Duggan "Sister" Archer-Gilligan was a nursing home proprietor and serial killer from Windsor, Connecticut. She murdered at least five people by poisoning them. One of her victims was her second husband, Michael Gilligan; the others were residents of her nursing home.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gwendolyn Graham and Cathy Wood</span> American serial killer duo

Gwendolyn Gail Graham and Catherine May Wood are American serial killers convicted of killing five elderly women in Walker, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, in 1987. They committed their crimes in the Alpine Manor nursing home, where they both worked as nurse's aides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genene Jones</span> American female serial killer

Genene Anne Jones is an American serial killer, responsible for the deaths of up to 60 infants and children in her care as a licensed vocational nurse during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1984, Jones was convicted of murder and injury to a child. She had used injections of digoxin, heparin, and later succinylcholine to induce medical crises in her patients, causing numerous deaths. The exact number of victims remains unknown; hospital officials allegedly misplaced and then destroyed records of Jones' activities, to prevent further litigation after Jones' first conviction.

Beverley Gail Allitt is an English serial killer who was convicted of murdering four infants, attempting to murder three others, and causing grievous bodily harm to a further six at Grantham and Kesteven Hospital, Lincolnshire, between February and April 1991. She committed the murders as a State Enrolled Nurse on the hospital's children's ward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Swango</span> American serial killer

Michael Joseph Swango is an American serial killer and physician who is estimated to have been involved in as many as 60 fatal poisonings of patients and colleagues in the United States and Zimbabwe, although he admitted to causing only four deaths. He was sentenced in 2000 to three consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole and is serving his sentence at ADX Florence at his own request.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colin Norris</span> Scottish serial killer

Colin Campbell Norris is a Scottish serial killer and former nurse convicted for the murder of four elderly patients and the attempted murder of another in two hospitals in Leeds, England, in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Harvey</span> American serial killer (1952–2017)

Donald Harvey was an American serial killer who claimed to have murdered 87 people, though he has 37 confirmed victims. He was able to do this during his time as a hospital orderly. His spree took place between 1970 and 1987.

Jessie Gordon, formerly McTavish, is a Scottish retired nurse who was convicted in 1974 of murdering a patient with insulin, and of administering a variety of substances with intent to cause harm. The conviction was overturned on appeal in 1976. She was dubbed the "Angel of Death" by the press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orville Lynn Majors</span> American serial killer

Orville Lynn Majors was a licensed practical nurse and serial killer who was convicted of murdering his patients in Clinton, Indiana. Though he was tried for only seven murders and convicted of six, he was believed to have caused additional deaths between 1993 and 1995, when he was employed by the hospital at which the deaths occurred and for which he was investigated. It was reported that he murdered patients who he claimed were demanding, whiny, or disproportionately adding to his work load.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Stepping Hill Hospital poisoning incident</span> 2011 serial murder in the United Kingdom

In 2011, deaths occurred at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. After suspicions were raised concerning the similarities of the deaths, a murder inquiry was launched. Nurse Victorino Chua was found to have poisoned several patients with insulin. He was convicted of murder in 2015 and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Elizabeth Tracy Mae "Bethe" Wettlaufer is a convicted Canadian serial killer and former registered nurse who confessed to murdering eight senior citizens and attempting to murder six others in southwestern Ontario between 2007 and 2016. With a total of 14 victims either killed or injured by her actions, she is described as one of the worst serial killers in Canadian history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Kleeh</span> American judge (born 1974)

Thomas Shawn Kleeh is the Chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia.

William Dale Archerd was an American serial killer who killed at least three people with insulin injections between 1956 and 1966 in Northern California. He was the first to be convicted of using insulin as a murder weapon in the US, and he is suspected in three more cases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucy Letby</span> British serial killer (born 1990)

Lucy Letby is a British former neonatal nurse who murdered seven infants and attempted the murder of seven others between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby came under suspicion following a high number of infant deaths which occurred at the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital shortly after she began working with children in the hospital's intensive care unit.

<i>The Good Nurse</i> 2022 crime drama film by Tobias Lindholm

The Good Nurse is a 2022 American thriller film starring Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne, about the serial killer Charles Cullen and the fellow nurse who suspects him. The film is based on the 2013 true-crime book of the same name by Charles Graeber. It is directed by Tobias Lindholm and written by Krysty Wilson-Cairns. The film also stars Nnamdi Asomugha, Kim Dickens, and Noah Emmerich.

Vickie Dawn Carson Jackson is an American serial killer who killed at least 10 patients at the Nocona General Hospital in Nocona, Texas between 2000 and 2001, using the muscle paralytic drug mivacurium. Despite protesting her innocence, she was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Jeffrey Lynn Feltner was an American serial killer and former nurse's aide who smothered seven patients to death from 1988 to 1989 at the hospitals he worked at. After initially confessing but later recanting his statements, he pleaded guilty to two of the murders in exchange for a 25-to-life sentence and no further charges in the other murders. A few years after his conviction, he died behind bars from AIDS complications.

Heather Irene Pressdee is an American nurse and convicted serial killer. She is serving life imprisonment, after pleading guilty to three counts of first- degree murder and 19 counts of attempted murder. Pressdee was convicted of murdering three patients by lethal injection of Insulin, and is connected to the deaths of 17 in total, which took place in Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler and Westmoreland Pennsylvania.

References

  1. ↑ "Convicted Serial Killer Reta Mays moved to Low-Security Prison out of State". WSAZ News Channel 3. June 18, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  2. 1 2 Harvey, Matt (May 16, 2021). "'I know that judgment will come one day': Veterans Affairs hospital serial killer gets life in prison". WV News. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Woman Who Murdered 7 Veterans In VA Hospital Gets Multiple Life Sentences". National Public Radio . May 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 Sandhu, Parwinder (July 25, 2020). "Who is Reta Mays? Nursing Assistant Kills 7 Vets with Lethal Jabs, Watch Them Die". International Business Times . Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Rein, Lisa; Born, Molly (July 14, 2020). "Former nursing assistant in W.Va. hospital confesses to killing 7 veterans". The Washington Post . Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Slack, Donovan; Miller, Ryan W.; Alltucker, Ken (May 12, 2021). "'The monster no one sees coming': VA hospital serial killer sentenced to life in prison for murdering seven veterans". USA Today . Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Carpenter, Em (July 15, 2020). "Reta Mays: An Angel of Death Stalking Her Own At VA Hospital". Kaley Fedko. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  8. 1 2 Fedko, Kaley (May 12, 2021). "The timeline of Reta Mays' crimes and what's next". WDTV. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  9. 1 2 "Former VA Hospital Nursing Assistant Sentenced to Seven Consecutive Life Sentences for Murdering Seven Veterans and Assault with Intent to Commit Murder of an Eighth". United States Department of Justice . May 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Hypoglycemia (Low Blood sugar)". American Diabetes Association . 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  11. ↑ Shane III, Leo (July 14, 2020). "Former VA health worker pleads guilty to murdering seven patients with insulin poisoning". Military Times . Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  12. 1 2 3 Jenkins, Jeff (October 17, 2021). "Interviewing a killer: Federal investigators shed light on Reta Mays case". Metro News. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  13. ↑ Izaguirre, Anthony (July 18, 2020). "Fired VA staffer admits to murdering 7 patients with insulin". WSET 3 News. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  14. ↑ Raby, John (May 11, 2021). "'Monster': 7 life sentences for ex-hospital worker in deaths". Associated Press . Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  15. ↑ Shane III, Leo (May 11, 2021). "Former VA health worker sentenced to life in prison for murdering seven patients via insulin poisoning". Military Times. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  16. 1 2 "Clarksburg VA serial killer Reta Mays receives 7 consecutive life sentences". 12 WBOY. May 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Former nursing aide who admitted to killing 7 veterans with fatal doses of insulin sentenced to life in prison". CBS News . May 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  18. ↑ Harvey, Matt (July 18, 2021). "West Virginia serial killer of hospitalized military veterans placed at low-security fed prison in Alabama". WVNews. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  19. ↑ Harvey, Matt (May 11, 2021). "Reta Mays, serial killer of hospitalized military veterans, gets 7 consecutive life terms plus 20 years". WVNews. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Kime, Patricia (May 11, 2021). "VA Nursing Aide Reta Mays Gets 7 Life Sentences for Killing Veterans in Her Care". Military.com. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.