Jessie Gordon, formerly McTavish, (born c.1940) is a
Scottish retired
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...
who was convicted in 1974 of murdering a patient with
insulin
Insulin (, from Latin ''insula'', 'island') is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreatic islets encoded in humans by the ''INS'' gene. It is considered to be the main anabolic hormone of the body. It regulates the metabolism o ...
, and of administering a variety of substances
with intent to cause harm.
The conviction was overturned on appeal in 1976. She was dubbed the "Angel of Death" by the press.
[Daily Record]
/ref>
Career
McTavish worked in Ward 5 at Glasgow's Ruchill Hospital
Ruchill Hospital was a fever hospital in the Ruchill area of Glasgow, Scotland. The hospital was closed in 1998 and was sold to Scottish Enterprise in July 1999. It was managed by NHS Greater Glasgow.
__TOC__ History
In 1891 when the boundaries ...
.[
]
Prosecution
McTavish was tried in 1974 for the murder of an 80-year-old patient, Elizabeth Lyon[ and assaulting three other patients by giving them illegal injections.] One victim was found after tests to have an inexplicable quantity of pethidine
Pethidine, also known as meperidine and sold under the brand name Demerol among others, is a synthetic opioid analgesic, pain medication of the phenylpiperidine class. Synthesized in 1938 as a potential anticholinergic agent by the German chemis ...
in their system, while the murder victim had been injected with soluble insulin. Colleagues of McTavish told the court how they had witnessed her inject a patient with an entirely unnecessary dose of phenobarbitone
Phenobarbital, also known as phenobarbitone or phenobarb, sold under the brand name Luminal among others, is a medication of the barbiturate type. It is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for the treatment of certain types of ep ...
and then make no record of the injection, and that she had said at the time, "Doctor likes them to go quietly". Multiple doctors testified that McTavish often gave patients injections without recording these events in the patients' case notes.
Despite the blood test evidence, McTavish claimed during the 15-day trial that she had only injected the patient with a placebo
A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like Saline (medicine), saline), sham surgery, and other procedures.
In general ...
of sterile water.[ However, McTavish had admitted in police interviews that she had administered insulin to patients without authorisation.]
McTavish was jailed for life in October 1974. An appeal in February 1975 was successful. Three appeals court judges said that while there was ample evidence to support the conviction, the McTavish's legal team's successful argument—that the judge, Lord Robertson, had inadvertently misled the jury—would prevail. The appeals judges said Lord Robertson had failed to highlight the fact that McTavish denied admitting to the police that she had committed a mercy killing
Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering.
Different countries have different eutha ...
, an omission that "a few words could have cured".
Suspected other victims
Apart from the case prosecuted, another 23 deaths were deemed suspicious by investigators.
Motive
The prosecution said that McTavish had been inspired by an episode of the detective series '' A Man Called Ironside'', in which a character said that insulin was untraceable as a murder weapon and proceeded to murder a person using this method. McTavish had notably discussed with colleagues how the programme had taught her that soluble insulin would be an untraceable agent for homicide.
Aftermath
In 1976, McTavish married, becoming Jessie Gordon.
In 1984, she was restored to the professional register for nursing, midwifery and health visiting. She continued her career in nursing.
Influence
Although acquitted, McTavish's case often is mentioned in lectures at medical colleges in Britain, and is cited in textbooks and academic papers about forensic science and medical malpractice. Colin Norris
Colin Campbell Norris (born 12 February 1976) is a serial killer nurse from Milton in Glasgow, Scotland, who murdered four "difficult" elderly patients and attempted to murder another in two hospitals in Leeds, England in 2002. Norris, who se ...
, a nurse convicted of four murders and an attempted murder in 2008, is said to have been inspired by McTavish's case.[ He murdered his patients using insulin.] Norris, a fellow Scottish nurse, grew up only a mile away from Ruchill where McTavish's crimes occurred at the hospital. Her case was discussed extensively in lectures at Dundee University
, mottoeng = "My soul doth magnify the Lord"
, established = 1967 – gained independent university status by Royal Charter1897 – Constituent college of the University of St Andrews1881 – University College
, t ...
when Norris studied there.
See also
*Benjamin Geen
Benjamin Geen is a double murderer who killed two patients and committed grievous bodily harm against 15 others while working as a nurse at Horton General Hospital in Banbury, Oxfordshire in 2003 and 2004. Geen was believed to be motivated by h ...
, British nurse who murdered two patients and committed grievous bodily harm against 15 others, has also been the subject of a campaign attempting to win his release from prison
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McTavish, Jessie
Scottish nurses
Overturned convictions in Scotland
Health professionals from Glasgow
Year of birth uncertain
Living people