Richard Angelo Background
Angelo was born on August 29, 1962. His mother was an economics teacher. His father was a high school guidance counselor for the Lindenhurst school district on Long Island. Angelo graduated from St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School in 1980. He went to Farmingdale State College for a two-year nursing program, he was an honor student. In October 1987, he was suspected of poisoning a patient at the Good Samaritan Hospital on Long Island. Angelo was arrested for his assault on Gerolamo Cucich, because he was the only person that matched the description given to the police. The criminal was suspected as a “heavyset man with a dark beard and glasses.” After the arrest, Angelo confessed to poisoning other patients with Pavulon and Anectine, used to induce muscle relaxation and short-term paralysis. Due to his actions, thirty recently deceased patients were examined for traces of the paralyzing agents .It was discovered that Angelo poisoned at least 35 patients at the hospital, yet he only worked there for seven months. As for repercussions, ten patients died. Angelo was proclaimed the ‘Angel of Death.’ He admitted to poisoning patients because he wanted to be seen as a hero. He would wait until his patients went into cardiac arrest, then he would proceed to save them in front of his colleagues. Due to the high-profile nature of the case, Angelo refused to pay his $50,000 bail, he feared for his well-being. In December 1989, Angelo was found guilty on two counts of murder, one count of manslaughter, and one count of criminally negligent homicide. At the age of 27, on January 25, 1990 he was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. “Neighbors admired his courage, but none suspected his underlying motivation an obsessive need for recognition as a ‘hero.'” He was a volunteer fireman prior to becoming a nurse He may have suffered from dissociative identity disorder, known as multiple personality disorder. There had been 37 “code Blue” emergencies since Angelo started working graveyard shift. Resulting in 25 patient deaths. Only 12 out of the 37 patients survived from Angelo’s attacks