PA Nurse Accused Of Killing 2 Patients Killed A Third: Lawsuit

PITTSBURGH, PA — A Western Pennsylvania nurse already criminally charged with killing two of her patients was accused in a civil lawsuit filed Tuesday of also killing a third.

Heather Pressdee, whom state Attorney General Michelle Henry charged with killing a pair of patients at a Butler County nursing home in May, also killed a third person at a similar facility in Westmoreland County, the lawsuit alleges.

Pressdee, 40, of Harrison, is accused of administering lethal does of unnecessary medication that resulted in two patients dying and leaving a third hospitalized at the Butler facility. The civil lawsuit asserts that she also was responsible for the death of Marianne Bower, a 68-year-old grandmother, who died in September 2021, at the Westmoreland County nursing home.

Bower also died from a lethal insulin overdose, the lawsuit contends.

No criminal charges have been filed in connection with Bower's death.

Pressdee is not a defendant in the civil lawsuit. Bower's family is suing the Belair Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Lower Burrell, Westmoreland County, and several affiliated companies. Belair officials could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.

The litigation contends that Belair administrators didn't adequately vet Pressdee before hiring her. It also alleges that they ignored staff concerns about Pressdee, whom some colleagues dubbed "the killer nurse" - and disciplined employees who raised concerns about Pressdee's care for the facility's residents.