Wisconsin hospice nurse accused of cutting off man’s leg without permission

SPRING VALLEY, Wisconsin (WTVO) — A Wisconsin hospice nurse amputated a dying man’s leg without permission and planned to use it for her taxidermy shop, prosecutors say.

38-year-old Mary K. Brown, a registered nurse at a Spring Valley nursing home, reportedly told colleagues she planned to cut off a 62-year-old patient’s leg and display it in the store. Washington Post.

The old man was a patient admitted to the Spring Valley Health and Rehabilitation Center in March, according to court documents. The man collapsed at his home and went outside without his shoes, sustaining severe frostbite on both his feet, according to the Pierce County District Attorney.

By May 27, nurses expected him to die soon, the affidavit said.

The man’s legs were “black like a mummy,” and the patient was “a little lumpy,” an employee told an employee.

Brown reportedly sought permission from the house administrators to amputate his leg, but was turned down because the patient was expected to die soon.

According to court records, Brown had his leg amputated because he “believed it was the right thing to do.”

Witnesses said Brown had neither the doctor’s orders nor the victim’s consent to perform the amputation. WQOW.

A nurse who was present during the amputation later told investigators that Brown said he took the leg to a taxidermy shop and displayed it next to a “Put your boots on, kids” sign.

Larson later told police that he had conducted his own investigation into the operation, determined that Brown had removed the man’s leg for “dignity and comfort”, and believed doctors had ordered the operation.

The leg was placed in a freezer, but prosecutors allege that Brown tried to persuade a nurse to allow him to “take it home and save it.”

A few days later, when the man died, the leg went with him to the funeral home.

Brown was charged with mayhem and willfully causing serious bodily harm to an elderly person. If her conviction, she would face up to her 92 years in prison.

according to KSTPSpring Valley Health and Rehab Center, released a statement about the incident, saying, “We are and will continue to cooperate fully with the investigation of this matter. are not employed in the communities of