Lexington nurse accused of killing patient makes first court appearance
The Lexington nurse accused of killing a 97-year-old patient via intentional medical maltreatment made her first appearance in court Friday.
Eyvette Hunter, 52, was indicted on one charge of murder and arrested on Aug. 23, according to court records. Police say Hunter’s maltreatment caused the death of James Morris, who died at Baptist Health Lexington on May 5.
Hunter was arraigned in circuit court by Judge Thomas Travis on Friday. During her arraignment, the prosecution brought up a motion it filed earlier this week, which requests permission for the Lexington Police Department to conduct a forensic examination of Hunter’s cellphone.
According to court documents, Hunter used her phone to communicate with another individual about the incident. Police seized Hunter’s phone during her arrest but have not investigated it yet for evidence.
Hunter’s lawyer argued against the motion, and Travis decided it was best to discuss the motion in further detail at a later hearing. Hunter’s next appearance in court is scheduled for Sept. 15.
Hunter also will have a pretrial hearing on Oct. 6.
Police said Morris’ death was “a direct result” of Hunter’s actions. According to a suspension order by the state Board of Nursing, Hunter allegedly withdrew a vial of lorazepam meant for another patient and injected it into Morris .Once Morris was asleep, Hunter force fed him, which caused him to go into respiratory distress and then to aspirate, according to court documents.
Morris’ cause of death was aspiration pneumonia, according to court documents.
Hunter is being held at the Fayette County Detention Center on a $100,000 bond, per jail records.
