In the summer of 1970, a quiet tragedy unfolded within the walls of Marymount Hospital in London, Kentucky, forever altering the lives of those involved. Elizabeth Wyatt, a 42-year-old Caucasian woman, was a patient at the hospital, battling cancer and reliant on a continuous supply of oxygen to survive. Her life, however, was cut short on June 22, 1970, not by her illness, but by a deliberate act of a hospital orderly.
An 18-year-old orderly named Donald Harvey was responsible for her
care. In a chilling breach of trust, Harvey intentionally connected Wyatt's oxygen supply to a tank that was nearly empty. This act deprived her of the life-sustaining oxygen she desperately needed, leading to her death. At the time, her death was not recognized as a homicide, and Harvey's actions went undetected, allowing him to continue his work in the healthcare field.
It would be seventeen years before the truth of Elizabeth Wyatt's death, and the deaths of many others, would come to light. In 1987, Donald Harvey was finally arrested and ultimately confessed to a string of murders committed while he worked at various healthcare facilities. He claimed that some of his actions, including what he did to Wyatt, were 'mercy killings,' stating that she had expressed a desire to die. Harvey was convicted for his numerous crimes and received multiple life sentences. His own life ended in prison in 2017 when he was killed by another inmate.
