Pressdee pleads guilty to killing nursing home residents
This story has been updated. Click here for more details
A former Natrona Heights nurse pleaded guilty Thursday, May 2 to three counts of first-degree murder and 19 counts of attempted murder related to the deaths of patients in her care at nursing homes in Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler and Westmoreland counties.
Heather Pressdee, 41, was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences regarding three counts of first degree murder, plus 380 to 760 years of consecutive incarceration for the 19 counts of criminal attempt to commit murder in accordance with a plea agreement.
As part of the agreement, the attorney general’s office did not seek a notice of aggravating circumstances, which removed the death penalty from consideration.
She appeared before Judge Joseph E. Kubit at a 9 a.m. status conference, which concluded Thursday.
Pressdee had been held in Butler County Prison without bail since her arrest in May 2023. She was initially charged with two counts of first degree murder, two counts of criminal homicide, one count of criminal attempted homicide, 17 counts of attempted murder and 22 counts of neglect of a care-dependent person.
“The defendant used her position of trust as a means to poison patients who depended on her for care,” Attorney General Michelle Henry said. “This plea and life sentence will not bring back the lives lost, but it will ensure Heather Pressdee never has another opportunity to inflict further harm. I offer my sincere sympathy to all who have suffered at this defendant’s hands. I commend my agents and investigators, and assisting agencies, who meticulously worked this investigation to uncover the defendant’s terrible acts.”
The murder and homicide charges related to incidents at Quality Life Services in Donegal Township and Sunnyview Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Butler Township.
At a hearing in February, Pressdee said she “confessed.” Following the defense’s request for a 90-day continuance, Pressdee was asked by her lawyer to review further evidence compiled by the state attorney general's office. Pressdee replied that she wanted to “sign and be done.”
Charging documents indicate Pressdee worked at 12 facilities across Butler, Allegheny, Westmoreland and Armstrong counties between October 2018 and May 2023. She is accused of killing or attempting to kill patients at five locations.
Within Butler County, she is charged with at least four deaths at Quality Life Services, where she was employed from May to November 2022, and at least six deaths at Sunnyview Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, where she worked from January to May.
Additionally, she is accused of crimes while employed as a registered nurse at Concordia at Rebecca Residence in West Deer Township, Allegheny County; Guardian Healthcare operating as Belair Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Lower Burrell, Westmoreland County; and Premier Armstrong Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Kittanning, Armstrong County.
