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Authorities Unseal Murder Indictments Against Texas Nurse

Aired July 17, 2002 - 14:09   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: New details are surfacing in the case of a Texas nurse charged with killing four hospital patients. Authorities unsealed the murder indictments just a short time ago.

Our David Mattingly joins us now from Nocona with details -- David.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, authorities unraveling today a shocking murder mystery from last year. Vickie Dawn Jackson, a former nurse, accused now of killing her patients in a serial killing spree that may have claimed more than 20 lives in a three- month period. The indictment handed down yesterday, however, names just four victims, all of them elderly, all testing positive for the drug mivacurium chloride. That's a muscle relaxer that can paralyze and kill in high doses.

Authorities exhumed 10 bodies last year, including the body of a 14-year-old girl, and depending on the test results, more murder charges could be coming in a case that has now stunned this rural community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM COLE, MONTAGUE COUNTY, TEXAS DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Shock and disbelief and -- not disbelief in the sense that I don't believe it happened, but disbelief that this could happen to you in a situation, where you are putting your life and your welfare in the hands of somebody that you trust with your life. I think that's probably the most common reaction. It's a betrayal. It's almost -- you know, almost an unthinkable betrayal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Prosecutors won't discuss a possible motive right now, and for now, Vickie Jackson will remain in the county jail on a $2 million bond.

The Nocona General Hospital, that 38-bed hospital where she worked, being credited by authorities today with getting the investigation started and alerting authorities very early in this murder investigation -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: David, any word on a pretrial or trial, any date set? MATTINGLY: No date set, but it could be about a month before we see her in court, and it's likely that she will be asking for a court- appointed attorney. So again, about a month from now we will see more legal action in this case.

PHILLIPS: And, David, how did they find out it was this muscle relaxant that was in the bodies of these individuals that died? Were there samples -- tissue samples sent off?

MATTINGLY: Well, there were quantities of that drug missing from the hospital during the time these people were dying. So authorities knew to look for that, but that doesn't turn up in a normal autopsy. In fact, it's very hard to detect, and that's why it has taken so long. It's turned up in four of the bodies and those were the people that were named in the indictment. We could see as many as six more out of those 10 bodies that were exhumed last year.

PHILLIPS: David Mattingly live from Nocona, Texas -- thanks, David.

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