NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The homicide conviction of a former Tennessee nurse for a medication error that killed a patient in 2017 has become a flashpoint in the campaign for Nashville district attorney.
RaDonda Vaught, 38, injected the paralyzing drug vecuronium into 75-year-old Charlene Murphey instead of the sedative Versed on Dec. 26, 2017. Last week, a jury found her guilty of criminally negligent homicide and gross neglect. She will be sentenced in May and could face years in prison.
Nursing and patient safety groups have spoken against the decision to criminally prosecute a medical error, saying it will cause other providers to try to hide their mistakes and make health care less safe overall. After the guilty verdict, the two candidates hoping to replace Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk issued their own statements condemning the prosecution.
P. Danielle Nellis said that the medical mistake was ” a classic medical malpractice issue and should have been resolved as such.” She suggested that Funk does not use his prosecutorial discretion wisely and may be influenced by politics. Candidate Sara Beth Myers issued a statement vowing not to criminally charge medical professionals “for mistakes that amount to civil malpractice.”
Nashville’s district attorney serves eight-year terms, and the issue might not have gained traction had the trial not happened so close to the election. Myers, Funk and Nellis will face off in the local Democratic primary on May 3. No Republicans are running for the position of Nashville’s chief prosecutor, so the primary will likely decide the race.