Court upholds charges against supervisor in 'Angel of Death' case
A judge today upheld the full indictment against a former supervisor at a McHenry County nursing home accused of allowing, and even encouraging, a nurse to serve as an 'Angel of Death' for dying residents.
Rejecting claims that three of the seven charges against Penny Whitlock did not follow state law, Judge Joseph Condon ruled Monday morning that prosecutors could charge her with neglecting three residents who died at the home by not reporting the suspicious death of a fourth to state authorities.
Whitlock, 59, of Woodstock, faces five counts of criminal neglect and two felony obstructing justice charges stemming from a state police investigation into several unusual deaths at the nursing home in 2006.
According to an Illinois Department of Public Health report, a nurse who worked under Whitlock intentionally overdosed several patients under her care, leading to at least five deaths. In some instances, nursing home workers told investigators, patients were overdosed with morphine because the nurse believed they were too troublesome to care for or believed they had lived long enough.
When Whitlock was informed of the nurse's actions, the report says, she told the nurse she could "serve as an Angel of Death" at the Woodstock nursing home. Whitlock has denied the allegations.
The seven-count indictment alleges Whitlock learned of the first suspicious death, of Derek Magnus, in April 2006, but failed to report it to authorities. That, according to the charges, led to harm against three other patients: Virginia Cole; John Sherman and Alvin Rudsinski.
Whitlock's attorney argued in court today that county prosecutors were misapplying the state's criminal neglect statute by charging her with neglecting Cole, Sherman and Rudsinski by failing to act in the case of Magnus. The statute, he said, does not allow one to be accused of neglecting one person as a result of neglect against another.
"Had the legislature contemplated the theory sought by (prosecutors), they would have written the law differently," defense attorney Nils Von Keudell said.
Condon disagreed, saying the law is being applied correctly.
"It's not the abuse of Magnus that caused the injury to Cole, it's the failure to report the abuse," the judge said.
Whitlock, who could face up to three years in prison if found guilty, is scheduled to return to court Nov. 10 for a pretrial status hearing.
The nurse at the center of the investigation, Marty Himebaugh, 57, of Lake in the Hills, faces four criminal neglect and two felony drug charges alleging she intentionally overdosed residents of the home between April and September 2006. The charges do not allege she intentionally killed any of the four residents she is accused of drugging and prosecutors have declined to say whether they died as a result of drug overdoses.
Himebaugh, who also has pleaded not guilty, is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 8 for a pretrial status.
Both women were indicted in April following a 15-month state police investigation that began when a co-worker told authorities she believed a nurse was killing residents of the Woodstock Residence.
The home since has been purchased by new owners and renamed Crossroads Care Center of Woodstock.
<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related documents</h2> <ul class="morePdf"> <li><a href="/pdf/angelofdeath.pdf">The full report </a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>