(NationRise.com) – A nurse has been sentenced to spend hundreds of years behind bars after pleading guilty to several charges, including murder.
Heather Pressdee, 41, initially faced the death penalty over three first-degree murder charges and 19 other counts related to attempting to commit murder. However, she was given a life sentence instead after admitting guilt during court proceedings in Butler County. The acts were committed while Pressdee worked as a nurse at Quality Life Services in Natrona Heights and the surrounding areas before her arrest in the spring of 2023.
According to prosecutors, she began administering “lethal and potentially lethal doses of insulin” to patients in 2020, including several patients who had no history of diabetes. At least 22 patients were victimized across four different counties at 11 facilities. Seventeen of those patients are believed to have since died from the overdoses.
Pressdee was sentenced to three lifetimes in prison. She could also face up to 760 more years for the additional charges related to attempted murder.
Attorney General Michelle Henry said in a statement that Pressdee’s incarceration will not make up for the lives she took, but it will prevent her from harming anyone else. She expressed her sadness for the victims and their families while commending investigators for bringing her to justice. She also said that her office began investigating Pressdee in 2022 after receiving a referral.
Western Pennsylvania nurse Heather Pressdee will spend the rest of her life in prison, without the possibility of parole, for intentionally administering lethal doses of insulin to patients at numerous skilled nursing facilities: https://t.co/UWksoDbwk9 pic.twitter.com/oPVpcyeMux
— Michelle Henry (@PAAttorneyGen) May 2, 2024
That referral followed several complaints from Pressdee’s coworkers. She was terminated multiple times during those three years for hurting her patients, yet she was still able to find work until her arrest. Pressdee claimed she was being merciful to their patients since, she claimed, they had a poor quality of life. The ages of her victims ranged between 43 and 104. She frequently harmed patients at night when the facilities had minimal staff. That largely shielded her from getting caught sooner.
She also spent several years working as a veterinary technician, during which time she frequently euthanized pets.
Copyright 2024, NationRise.com
