“I would suggest you take lunch, relax a little, let the tension go and come back and see what you can do,” he said. After several hours of deliberation, the jury sent a note to the court requesting additional instructions on the definition of “reasonable doubt”. The judge directed them to the definition in the jury instructions without providing any further framework. Husel faces 14 counts of murder as prosecutors say he deliberately administered overdoses of fentanyl that caused or accelerated the deaths of patients in the intensive care unit from 2015 to 2018. All counts also include the lowest count of attempted homicide. “If you hasten the death of a person, even if his death is as certain as the sun is about to rise in the morning, if you hasten it, you have caused his death under the law,” said Franklin County Attorney David Zein. he said in his last words. Defense attorney Jose Baez argued that prosecutors had not proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the doses actually accelerated patients’ deaths or that Husel deliberately intended to kill patients. The trial began in February, with more than 50 witnesses testifying in the prosecution, including doctors, nurses and administrators at Mount Carmel West Hospital, where Husell worked as an ICU doctor overnight. Family members described the stories of their loved ones who were quickly dropped once in the hospital, as well as their experiences with Husel and the ICU. Experts also told the court that the large doses of fentanyl that Husel gave to patients caused their deaths and were intended to speed up the death process. Despite the accusations, Husel’s former colleagues testified that he was a wonderful doctor who was hardworking, fought to save lives, was helpful to everyone in the ICU, and was always there to teach and explain. Husel’s defense called only one witness, Dr. Joel Zivot, who examined the medical records of the 14 patients and found that they had serious and incurable diseases. Zivot also testified that recovery to a normal state of health of the patients was not possible and found that underlying medical problems caused their death. Hussel did not take a stand. His medical license has been suspended at this time, the defense attorney confirmed to CNN.
How we got here
The trial comes almost three years after Husel, 46, was charged with 25 counts of murder, although 11 of those charges were dismissed at first instance. Mount Carmel Health System initially said the hospital received a report about Husel’s care on October 25, 2018. The hospital system removed Husel from patient care a month later. At that time, three people died “after taking excessive and potentially lethal doses of drugs” ordered by the doctor, the hospital said in a statement. Husel was fired on December 5, 2018. That same month, a lawyer representing Mount Carmel contacted the Franklin County Attorney’s Office, launching an investigation into Husel. During their initial conversations, the lawyer said that a doctor – later identified as Husel – was “administering doses of fentanyl at a level they internally believed was inappropriate and not for legitimate medical purposes,” said Ron O’Brien. Franklin. Prosecutor then. The study found that the doses, which ranged from 500 to 2,000 micrograms, were “designed to accelerate the death of treated patients,” O’Brien said. Fentanyl is an opioid used to treat patients with chronic severe pain or severe postoperative pain, according to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The drug, about 100 times more potent than morphine, is also often used in end-of-life care to reduce discomfort in dying patients. The DEA considers 2 milligrams of fentanyl, or 2,000 micrograms, to be a potentially lethal dose. CNN’s Amir Vera and Lauren del Valle contributed to this report.
