Nursing assistant who played video games as Vietnam veteran with 'serious medical ailments' lay dying spared jail time
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: A former nursing assistant who played video games as an elderly Vietnam war veteran she was supposed to care for lay dying has been spared jail.
Patricia A. Waible, of Nashua, New Hampshire, was a nursing assistant at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Bedford when the incident unfolded on July 3, 2016, according to a press release by the US Department of Justice.
On that particular day, 52-year-old Waible had been assigned to the overnight shift that worked from midnight to 8 am in the VA's nursing home unit. During the shift, her responsibilities included conducting hourly bed checks.
Early the next morning, her patient, Vietnam veteran and retired police detective Bill Nutter — referred to in court documents as "Patient 1" — who suffered from several "serious medical ailments" was found unresponsive and not breathing.
The 68-year-old was transferred by ambulance to an emergency room, where he could not be saved despite the best efforts of medical professionals and was declared dead.
When questioned about what she had been doing as Nutter died, Waible insisted to federal agents that she had done her job and had conducted hourly checks. It later emerged that she had lied, and had, in fact, been playing video games through the night.
In July 2019, she was charged and agreed to plead guilty to two counts of making false statements to federal agents in connection with their investigation of Nutter's death.
In a letter addressed to the court, Nutter's daughter demanded justice for the veteran. "My father might or might not have lived if they had found him at that time, but we will never know because the nurse was not doing her job and caring for him," she wrote.
"My father was a great man and sacrificed his entire life for this country and I hope that the court will do what is right for my father," she added.
Speaking during her court appearance, Waible apologized for her behavior. "I'm just so sorry," she said. "My life hasn’t been the same since that night. I haven't slept. I just can't believe I did what I did."
"She is remorseful for what she did and feels bad for the family of the patient that was involved in this case," said her attorney, Paul Garrity.
Federal Court Judge Dennis Saylor noted Waible's physical health, family responsibilities, age, and prior clean record before sentencing the 52-year-old to one year's probation.