Nurse accused of 10 deaths in MO hospital
July 1, 2002 less than 1 minute read
Nurse accused of 10 deaths in MO hospital
Authorities say a former Veterans Affairs hospital nurse killed 10 patients with succinylcholine, and 31 more deaths may be related.
Police in St. Louis have arrested Richard A. Williams, who worked at the Truman Memorial Veterans Affairs Hospital in Columbia, MO, 10 years ago. The 36-year-old nurse had been a suspect for some time, but has denied any wrongdoing. Williams left the hospital in 1993.
Police exhumed 13 bodies in 1993 but failed to determine the cause of death. However, toxicology tests in 2001 found succinylcholine in the tissues of 10 patients, leading to murder charges against Williams. The authorities say a total of 41 deaths were considered suspicious at the hospital. For the 10 patients Williams is charged with killing, the police say he was the only staff member on duty at the time and had access to succinylcholine.
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