Colin Norris
Encyclopedia
Colin Campbell Norris was a Scottish
nurse and convicted serial killer
from the Milton
area in Glasgow who was convicted of murder
ing four elderly patients in a hospital in Leeds
, England, in 2002. He was sentenced in 2008 to serve a minimum of 30 years in prison. Doubts have since been raised about his conviction by, among others, Prof Vincent Marks, a leading expert on insulin poisoning.
and St James's Hospital
. Suspicions were raised when Norris predicted the death of one patient, Ethel Halls, saying she would die at 5:15am. Her condition worsened badly that morning around 5am and she died some weeks later. He stated at the time: "it is always in the morning when things go wrong". When questioned by police about this and three other patients who had died while he was on duty, he said "he seemed to have been unlucky over the last 12 months". The four patients were 79, 80, 86 and 88 years old. The police investigated 72 cases in total.
deliberated for 4 days. Norris was convicted by a majority verdict on 3 March 2008 of the murder of four women, and the attempted murder
of a fifth aged 90. He was sentenced to life imprisonment
, and ordered to serve a minimum term of 30 years in prison the following day. Judge Mr Justice Griffith rejected any possibility that Norris was practising euthanasia
because none of the victims was terminally ill. He told Norris when sentencing:
Referred to in the British press
as the "Angel of Death", Norris killed his victims by injecting them with high levels of insulin
.
Jessie McTavish
, a nurse convicted and then cleared in 1974 for the murder of an 80-year-old patient with insulin
, has been identified as a possible inspiration for Norris. He once attended a lecture on her case while studying at nursing college.
Prof Marks says the four patients picked out by the experts after Mrs Hall's death "were all at very high risk of developing spontaneous hypoglycaemia" because they had risk factors such as malnutrition, infection and multi-organ failure.
Legal observers have noted that if the medical evidence is discredited then the case against Norris collapses, there being little motive and no forensic evidence linking him to the crimes.
, Britain's most prolific serial killer who killed more than 250 patients by lethal injections. Det Ch Supt Chris Gregg
who worked on the Shipman case and led the Norris investigation was convinced that Colin Norris would have gone on to kill considerably more people if he was not stopped in his tracks.
In 2006 Benjamin Geen
, a nurse at a hospital in Banbury
, Oxfordshire
, was given 17 life sentences for murdering two of his patients and attacking 15 others. He used a variety of injections which often included insulin.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
nurse and convicted serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
from the Milton
Milton, Glasgow
Milton is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde.Building on Milton in Glasgow started in the late 1940s as part of a general post-war construction programme by Glasgow Corporation to deal with the housing shortage and slum clearances.The housing scheme...
area in Glasgow who was convicted of murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
ing four elderly patients in a hospital in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, England, in 2002. He was sentenced in 2008 to serve a minimum of 30 years in prison. Doubts have since been raised about his conviction by, among others, Prof Vincent Marks, a leading expert on insulin poisoning.
Crimes
Norris worked at Leeds General InfirmaryLeeds General Infirmary
Leeds General Infirmary, also known as the LGI or, more correctly, The General Infirmary at Leeds, is a large teaching hospital based in the centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England and is part of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust....
and St James's Hospital
St James's University Hospital, Leeds
St. James's University Hospital in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, popularly known as Jimmy's, is one of the United Kingdom's most famous hospitals...
. Suspicions were raised when Norris predicted the death of one patient, Ethel Halls, saying she would die at 5:15am. Her condition worsened badly that morning around 5am and she died some weeks later. He stated at the time: "it is always in the morning when things go wrong". When questioned by police about this and three other patients who had died while he was on duty, he said "he seemed to have been unlucky over the last 12 months". The four patients were 79, 80, 86 and 88 years old. The police investigated 72 cases in total.
Trial
The trial took 19 weeks and the juryJury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
deliberated for 4 days. Norris was convicted by a majority verdict on 3 March 2008 of the murder of four women, and the attempted murder
Attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
of a fifth aged 90. He was sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
, and ordered to serve a minimum term of 30 years in prison the following day. Judge Mr Justice Griffith rejected any possibility that Norris was practising euthanasia
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
because none of the victims was terminally ill. He told Norris when sentencing:
"You are, I have absolutely no doubt, a thoroughly evilEvilEvil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
and dangerous man. You are an arrogant and manipulative man with a real dislike of elderly patients. The most telling evidence was that observation of one of your patients, Bridget Tarpey, who said 'he did not like us old women'."
Referred to in the British press
News media
The news media are those elements of the mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public.These include print media , broadcast news , and more recently the Internet .-Etymology:A medium is a carrier of something...
as the "Angel of Death", Norris killed his victims by injecting them with high levels of insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
.
Jessie McTavish
Jessie McTavish
Jessie McTavish is a Scottish former nurse who was convicted in 1974 of murdering a patient with insulin. The conviction was overturned on appeal in 1976. McTavish was dubbed the "Angel of Death" by the press.-Prosecution:...
, a nurse convicted and then cleared in 1974 for the murder of an 80-year-old patient with insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
, has been identified as a possible inspiration for Norris. He once attended a lecture on her case while studying at nursing college.
New Concerns over Conviction
On October 4th 2011, new concerns were raised about the safety of Norris's conviction. Prof Vincent Marks - a leading expert on insulin poisoning - said the jury at Norris's trial was led to believe by experts that a cluster of hypoglycaemic episodes, among people who were not diabetic, was sinister. The professor said international medical studies carried out in the years since the 35-year-old Glaswegian was convicted told a different story. "Looking at all the evidence, all I can say is I think Colin Norris's conviction is unsafe," Prof Marks said.Prof Marks says the four patients picked out by the experts after Mrs Hall's death "were all at very high risk of developing spontaneous hypoglycaemia" because they had risk factors such as malnutrition, infection and multi-organ failure.
Legal observers have noted that if the medical evidence is discredited then the case against Norris collapses, there being little motive and no forensic evidence linking him to the crimes.
Similar cases
In the aftermath of Norris's conviction, the British media drew comparisons with Doctor Harold ShipmanHarold Shipman
Harold Fredrick Shipman was an English doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history with 218 murders being positively ascribed to him....
, Britain's most prolific serial killer who killed more than 250 patients by lethal injections. Det Ch Supt Chris Gregg
Chris Gregg
Chris Gregg QPM, is a former Detective Chief Superintendent and was head of West Yorkshire Police’s Homicide and Major Enquiry Team . Gregg joined the force in 1974 and as a constable was put on front-line duties in the Yorkshire Ripper inquiry in the Helen Rytka murder incident room...
who worked on the Shipman case and led the Norris investigation was convinced that Colin Norris would have gone on to kill considerably more people if he was not stopped in his tracks.
In 2006 Benjamin Geen
Benjamin Geen
Benjamin Geen is a former nurse convicted of murdering two patients and causing grievous bodily harm to 15 others while working at Horton General Hospital in Banbury, Oxfordshire.-Crime:...
, a nurse at a hospital in Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, was given 17 life sentences for murdering two of his patients and attacking 15 others. He used a variety of injections which often included insulin.