Woman pleads guilty to killing hospitalized veterans by injecting them with insulin

Former Veterans Affairs nursing assistant Reta Mays pleaded guilty Tuesday to seven counts of second-degree murder and a single count of assault with intent to commit murder on patients.

The 46-year-old Mays admitted to fatally injecting the patients with insulin when she worked at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia. The patients, many of whom were not diabetic, died in 2017 and 2018, according to the charging documents. 

During those years, Mays was assigned to work the night shift on the in-patient Ward 3A, according to Tony O'Dell, a lawyer who represents the families of several veterans who died there under suspicious circumstances.

"These were people who were getting better," O'Dell told Just the News. "They were not on the verge of death."

Many family members believed that their loved ones died after taking unexpected downturns, O'Dell said. But the apparently unexplained deaths on Ward 3A continued. Eventually, medical staff took note.

"In or about Iune 2018, a medical doctor employed by VAMC Clarksburg as a hospitalist reported to the hospitalist’s supervisor a concern about the deaths of patients who had suffered unexplained hypoglycemic episodes on Ward 3A, including the deaths of multiple nondiabetic patients," according to the charging document filed yesterday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. "This concern led to an internal investigation that culminated in a referral for criminal investigation."

Mays quickly became suspect, O'Dell said. An investigation was launched. The hospital removed her from contact with patients, and reportedly fired her when supervisors believed she lied about her qualifications. For two years, the probe continued without resolution.

Local advocates, including West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, criticized the slow pace of the investigation, and pressed authorities to resolve it.

“It is unacceptable that after two years, the Clarksburg VAMC investigation has not concluded and the victims and their loved ones have yet to see justice or peace," Manchin told Just the News in a statement last month. "I continue to call on the VA and DOJ to wrap up this investigation so the victims’ families and the entire community can get answers and begin to heal. It is horrible that this investigation has gone on for as long as it has.”

The charges against Mays and her guilty pleas bring mixed reactions.

"The families I represent are all very pleased with the resolution of the criminal charges against Reta Mays, and commend U.S. Attorney Bill Powell for his work to bring this side of the case to a close," said O'Dell, who has filed lawsuits on behalf of several of the victims' families.

But, he added, the deaths could have been prevented.

"The VA hospital in Clarksburg had a frightening number of system failures that allowed this person to kill as many people as she did," O'Dell said. "The fact that the related deaths continued to pile up showed a complete lack of competence and a total lack of human caring."

Just the News was not able to locate an attorney for Mays.

Manchin, a member of Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, vowed to uncover how the murders occurred.

“My heart goes out to the families and loved ones who tragically lost a veteran and have had to endure this injustice," Manchin said in a statement. "While overdue, today justice is finally being served. I hope today’s announcement brings some semblance of peace to their hearts and to the families who are still uncertain about the fate of their Veterans."

Immediately following today's hearing, Mays was taken into custody by U.S. marshals, said O'Dell, who attended the session via Zoom.