The former Ontario nurse who confessed to killing eight of her elderly patients has been sentenced to life in prison, who no possibility of parole for 25 years.Last October, Elizabeth Wettlaufer, 50, was charged with eight counts of first-degree murder in Woodstock, Ontario for injecting elderly patients in nursing homes with fatal doses of insulin. She pleaded guilty to all charges.On Monday, Justice Bruce Thomas sentenced Wettlaufer to serve eight concurrent life sentences.
Advertisement
"She was far from an angel of mercy. Instead she was shadow of death that passed over them," Thomas said while delivering the sentence, according to the CBC. "She describes a euphoria from killing."He went on to say Wettlaufer's victims suffered through "a painful and contorting experience." However, he noted that her confession meant she felt remorse and without it, she likely never would have been brought to justice.Wettlaufer's victims are James Silcox, 84; Maurice Granat, 84; Gladys Millard 87; Helen Matheson, 95; Mary Zurawinski, 96; Helen Young, 90; Maureen Pickering, 79; and Arpad Horvath, 75. They were killed over a seven-year period.Many of the killings took place at Woodstock's Caressant Care long-term-care home in Woodstock. Wettlaufer was arrested after she confessed her crimes at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. She told police she got a "laughing feeling" after she killed someone and felt a "red surge" when she wanted to prey on a new victim.At Monday's sentencing hearing, Wettlaufer told the victims' families she is "extremely sorry," according to reporters on scene."Over the space of nine years I caused tremendous pain and suffering through my actions," she said.Her lawyer Brad Burgess acknowledged the "scope and magnitude" of the victims' grief but said if she wanted to, Wettlaufer "could have taken her secrets to the grave." He said her guilty pleas saved the families from enduring a trial.
Advertisement
The victims' loved ones read out victim impact statements in court Monday — there were 28 statements in total. Many of them described feeling guilty and grief-stricken after learning their family members had been murdered."Knowing that she suffered physically, that broke my heart," said Sandy Millard, whose mother Gladys, 87, was killed by Wettlaufer. "She fought the predator and cried out for over an hour and no one answered."Arpad Horvath Jr., whose father and namesake was killed at age 75, said a part of him died with his dad. "It's a nightmare I can't wake up from," he told the court.Reporters said Wettlaufer did not show emotion during the proceedings.She reportedly was compelled to confess after she found out she would be working with diabetic kids and quit her job believing she wouldn't be able to resist hurting them.Wettlaufer also pleaded guilty to four counts of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault.Follow Manisha Krishnan on Twitter.