‘She’s pure evil’: Nurse gets life in prison after admitting she intentionally gave patients excess insulin, prosecutors say

By Brammhi Balarajan, Jillian Sykes, Caroll Alvarado and Holly Yan

A former nurse who killed at least three patients and tried to kill more than a dozen more at nursing facilities across Pennsylvania has been sentenced to life in prison, the state’s attorney general said.

But the family of one of her victims said her real justice is yet to come.

Heather Pressdee pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder and 19 counts of criminal attempt to commit murder, the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office said.

Pressdee, 41, pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty, her attorney Phillip DiLucente told CNN Thursday.

As part of the plea agreement, a Butler County judge sentenced Pressdee to three consecutive life sentences for the three counts of murder “plus 380 to 760 years of consecutive incarceration for the 19 counts of criminal attempt to commit murder,” the attorney general’s office said. She will not be eligible for parole.

“The defendant used her position of trust as a means to poison patients who depended on her for care,” Attorney General Michelle Henry said.

“This plea and life sentence will not bring back the lives lost, but it will ensure Heather Pressdee never has another opportunity to inflict further harm.”

‘She played God’

Pressdee intentionally gave lethal and potentially lethal doses of insulin to patients at five care facilities in Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler and Westmoreland counties between 2020 and 2023.

Some of the patients didn’t even need insulin, the attorney general’s office said.

CNN asked Pressdee’s attorney about her motive but hasn’t received a reply.

Some of the victims’ relatives gave impact statements in court.

The daughter of victim Irene Simons said she’ll “never forgive” Pressdee for what she did.

“We’re angry and hurt that she disguised herself as a caring nurse,” Elizabeth Simons Ozella told CNN affiliate WTAE. “She took someone from this earth that she had no right to take, and she played God when she didn’t have that right.”

How the nurse tried to conceal her crimes

Pressdee admitted to “harming, with the intent to kill” the 19 patients, ages 43 to 104, the attorney general’s office said, according to a criminal complaint filed against the former nurse.

She would often administer insulin during the low-staffed night shift hours while working the medicine cart at the facilities, the criminal complaint stated.

“Pressdee often took steps to ensure her victims would expire prior to shift change so that they wouldn’t be sent to the hospital where her scheme could be discovered through medical testing such as C-peptide tests,” according to the criminal complaint.

Despite Pressdee’s hefty sentences this week, a sister of victim Nicholas Cymbol said, “There’s no justice for this.”

“She’s pure evil,” Melinda Brown said, according to WTAE. “We’ll get justice when she meets her maker.”

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‘She’s pure evil’: Nurse gets life in prison after admitting she intentionally gave patients excess insulin, prosecutors say

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2nd lawsuit targets Lower Burrell nursing home over death blamed on rogue nurse

Former nurse Heather Pressdee now linked to 17 nursing home deaths

2nd lawsuit targets Lower Burrell nursing home over death blamed on rogue nurse

by Jonathan D. Silver

Heather Pressdee

A second lawsuit was filed Thursday against a Lower Burrell nursing home over the death of a resident injected with a lethal dose of insulin, one of numerous victims whom authorities said were targeted by a rogue nurse during a yearslong killing spree.

The 15-count lawsuit against Belair Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center was filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court by Russell Colwell III of West View.

Colwell, 37, and his attorneys claim his grandmother, Mary Colwell, was a victim of former nurse Heather Pressdee, who is in jail awaiting trial on numerous murder and attempted homicide charges.

Colwell was 92 when she died Dec. 28, 2021. For two years, her family thought she died from natural causes.

But, this fall, investigators with the state Attorney General’s Office informed the family they were looking into her death as being the result of a criminal act by Pressdee, who was arrested in May.

That news stunned Colwell’s survivors — her five grandchildren — who believe her death could have been prevented had Belair followed more stringent hiring practices and better monitored patients’ blood sugar levels.

“All of that has really weighed on the family and is something they’re still processing,” Brandon Keller, one of their attorneys, said Thursday. “These were the people ultimately responsible for her care and failed miserably.”

Julie Beckert, a spokeswoman for Belair, said the nursing home’s parent company, Guardian, could not comment because it had not yet seen the lawsuit.

Pressdee’s criminal defense lawyers said Thursday they had no comment on a civil matter. They are busy trying to hammer out a plea deal with prosecutors while Pressdee awaits trial.

Investigators said Pressdee was fired or forced to resign from a dozen nursing homes and rehabilitation centers because of abusive conduct toward residents or staff, including a half-dozen facilities where she worked before Belair.

She is accused of killing or trying to kill at least 22 residents at multiple facilities by injecting them with insulin, though in many cases the alleged victims were not diabetic. The insulin caused severely low blood sugar levels and death, authorities said.

Pressdee confessed to administering the insulin, according to investigators.

Colwell, one of eight children, lived in New Kensington, loved the beach and taught swimming at a YMCA. She was a congregant at The River Community Church in New Kensington. Her three children and husband died before her.

She had dementia when she was admitted to Belair in November 2021 after a fall. Pressdee had been hired earlier that year as an assistant director of nursing despite what Colwell’s attorneys called an “alarming history of resident abuse at prior facilities.”

Colwell’s lawyers pointed to that history as evidence of flawed hiring practices at Belair.

They also mentioned allegations of troubling behavior by Pressdee at Belair and suspicions by co-workers that she was harming residents, all previously documented by investigators. Guardian administrators were aware of the rumors about Pressdee, but did nothing, the lawsuit claims.

Around that time, the state Department of Health inspected Belair and found problems with the facility failing to notify doctors about problems with residents’ high blood-sugar levels, leading to the death of one person.

Inspectors found that Belair residents were in “immediate jeopardy.”

They even interviewed Pressdee, who admitted to not following protocols.

Despite that, the lawsuit claims, Belair “failed to further investigate Pressdee after she admitted to the Health Department that she did not comply with the resident’s care plan and facility policy.”

Two nights before Colwell’s death, medical records showed that she was in a “pleasant” mood, the lawsuit said. The next day, Pressdee took over Colwell’s care and spent “excessive amounts of time with her,” according to the lawsuit.

On the day she died, Colwell took a rapid turn for the worse. Pressdee took her vital signs — but did not measure her blood sugar, the lawsuit said. At 11 a.m. on Dec. 28, 2021, an occupational therapist tried to go into Colwell’s room, but the lawsuit claims that Pressdee asked her to leave and later insisted that Colwell not be touched. She died about two hours later.

Investigators said Pressdee admitted to giving insulin to a resident identified only as M.C. All her alleged victims are listed only by initials in the criminal complaints, but all other details about M.C. match Mary Colwell.

Pressdee left Belair in February 2022. Colwell’s lawyers wrote that she was terminated for abusive behavior toward residents and staff.

The lawsuit alleging wrongful death and corporate negligence was filed just under the two-year statute of limitations. It was filed in Allegheny County, where Guardian does business, lawyers said. Colwell is seeking damages and a jury trial.

In October, attorney Robert Peirce sued Belair in connection with the Sept. 28, 2021, death of Marianne Bower, a 68-year-old grandmother of seven, allegedly at Pressdee’s hands.

Investigators said Pressdee was responsible for at least five deaths at the facility.

In the Bower case, Pressdee sent a sympathy card and gift to the family after Bower’s death, according to the lawsuit.

Both complaints name as defendants Belair, its parent company Guardian, and numerous interrelated legal entities.

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2nd lawsuit targets Lower Burrell nursing home over death blamed on rogue nurse

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Former nurse Heather Pressdee now linked to 17 nursing home deaths

Former nurse Heather Pressdee now linked to 17 nursing home deaths

The victims ranged in age from 43 to 104.

By Jon Haworth

A former Pennsylvania nurse who, in May, had been accused of killing two patients with doses of insulin now faces more murder charges and has confessed to trying to kill 19 additional people at several locations, authorities said Thursday.

Heather Pressdee, 41, is accused of administering excessive amounts of insulin to patients in her care, some of whom were diabetic and required insulin, and some of whom were not, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.

In total, 17 patients died who had been cared for by Pressdee.

Pressdee has admitted to trying to kill 19 other patients with insulin at five different rehabilitation centers across the state as far back as 2020, and as recently as this year, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office said.

"The allegations against Ms. Pressdee are disturbing. It is hard to comprehend how a nurse, trusted to care for her patients, could choose to deliberately and systematically harm them,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry. "The damage done to the victims and their loved ones cannot be overstated. Every person in a medical or care facility should feel safe and cared for, and my office will work tirelessly to hold the defendant accountable for her crimes and protect care-dependent Pennsylvanians from future harm."

Heather Pressdee, 41, is accused of administering excessive amounts of insulin to patients in her care, some of whom were diabetic and required insulin, and some of whom were not, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.

Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office

Pressdee was now been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, 17 counts of attempted murder and 19 counts of neglect of a care-dependent person.

"The alleged crimes happened while Pressdee was employed as a registered nurse at the following facilities: Concordia at Rebecca Residence; Belair Healthcare and Rehabilitation (Guardian); Quality Life Services Chicora; Premier Armstrong Rehabilitation and Nursing Center; and Sunnyview Rehabilitation and Nursing Center," officials said. "Pressdee typically administered the insulin during overnight shifts when staffing was low and the emergencies would not prompt immediate hospitalization."

The victims ranged in age from 43 to 104.

Pressdee was arraigned on Thursday and waived her preliminary hearing on these charges. She currently remains in custody at Butler County Prison without bail.

Anyone with information about these incidents or Heather Pressdee is asked to contact the Office of Attorney General’s tipline at 888-538-8541.

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Former nurse Heather Pressdee now linked to 17 nursing home deaths