Nurse accused of killing Ky. man by ‘intentional medical maltreatment’

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - A Kentucky nurse is accused of killing a man in Lexington by “medical maltreatment.”

According to court documents, 52-year-old Eyvette Hunter was indicted Monday on a murder charge. Police say she was taken into custody Tuesday morning.

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The indictment says Hunter unlawfully caused the death of 97-year-old James Morris, of Lexington, back on April 30 by “intentional medical maltreatment.” Morris, a war veteran, was admitted to Baptist Health after a fall.

A complaint filed with the Kentucky Board of Nursing shows Hunter’s nursing license was also suspended Monday.

The suspension order gave more details about what happened.

It says Hunter worked as a nurse at Baptist Health and was treating a 97-year-old patient, identified by court documents as Morris.

Morris had become agitated and aggressive and Hunter requested medication to calm him down. That request was denied by both a doctor and a nurse practitioner.

After being denied, the suspension order says Hunter withdrew a vial of lorazepam meant for another patient and administered it to Morris.

Another hospital employee saw what happened and asked what Hunter had given Morris, to which she replied, “something special.” They put Morris back in bed and he became sedated. The other employee again asked what Hunter had given Morris and she again replied, “something special.”

A short time later, Morris was found by another nurse with labored breathing and his oxygen saturation equipment was not monitoring. The suspension order says it was determined that Hunter had disarmed or lowered the oxygen monitoring system so the alarm wouldn’t go off.

They were able to get his oxygen level back up, but, due to him breathing with the substances he ingested, Morris developed pneumonia. Morris was released to hospice care on May 3 and passed away on May 5. Aspirational pneumonia was listed as the cause of death.

The suspension order says Hunter admitted to administering the drug to Morris without an order.

Baptist Health fired Hunter the day the incident happened. They released this statement after Hunter’s arrest:

We have learned that a former nurse at our hospital has been arrested on criminal charges. The nurse has not worked here since April 30. The nurse was terminated and was reported to the Kentucky Board of Nursing. The hospital has fully cooperated with the police investigation. Patient care and safety are always our top priorities. Out of respect for the family and because this is a criminal matter, we are not able to talk about the investigation.

The indictment says Hunter will be held on a $100,000 bond.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact Lexington Police by calling (859) 258-3600. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Bluegrass Crime Stoppers by calling (859) 253-2020, online at www.bluegrasscrimestoppers.com, or through the P3 Tips app available at www.p3tips.com.

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