Former respiratory therapist in Missouri charged with second patient’s murder

CHILLICOTHE, Mo. — A former respiratory therapist in Chillicothe, Missouri, is facing charges for murdering a second patient decades ago.

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Jennifer Hall was charged with the murder of David Wesley Harper, 37, by Livingston County Prosecutor Adam Warren, according to WDAF.

In court records obtained by KCTV, the first-degree murder charge was filed last Wednesday.

Hall was already facing a first-degree murder charge in the death of Fern Franco, 75, WDAF reported.

In 2002, both Franco and Harper died while they were patients at the Hedrick Medical Center, according to WDAF. Hall was a respiratory therapist for six months from Dec. 2021 to May 2002.

Harper was admitted to the hospital on March 18, 2002, for bronchitis. Harper’s condition improved a couple of days later and he was ready to be discharged. According to a probable cause document obtained by WDAF, Harper agreed to stay an additional night to get fitted for a C-PAP mask. He died the following day.

In court records obtained by WDAF, Hall failed to record two visits she made to Harper’s room in the 25 minutes before he died. She recorded on a different set of medical documents that she was with Harper when he passed away.

Employees at the hospital told police they found a vial of the drug succinylcholine in her pocket, a drug Hall was not certified to administer.

Succinylcholine is a drug that can paralyze a person’s muscles including the diaphragm which leads them to suffocate even though they are conscious and know what is happening, according to WDAF.

Court records obtained by WDAF say that Hall is accused of using Succinylcholine to murder Franco the following month.

A probable cause document obtained by KCTV claims that the number of cardiac collapse incidents increased “alarmingly” at the facility when Hall worked there. About 18 cardiac collapse incidents were reported and nine people died.

In May 2022, Hall was charged with first-degree murder in Franco’s death, according to KCTV. She has pleaded not guilty.

Hall is expected for an initial court appearance on Wednesday for this latest charge, according to KCTV.

A trial date in the case of Franco’s death is set for May 15, according to WDAF.