MAGGOT BRAIN: Nurse Sentenced For Allowing Infestation In Patient’s Head
For allowing a horde of maggots to fester in the head wound of an elderly patient, a former nursing-home supervisor was sentenced yesterday in Delaware County court to four years’ probation and ordered to pay $4,800 in restitution.
Donna Marie Cameron, 40, of Aston, was once director of nursing at the now-defunct St. James Retirement and Rehabilitation Center, in Chester. The court found that Cameron was anything but aware of the needs of Patricia Holdsworth, 72, a St. James’ resident suffering from skin cancer and mental-health issues.
In June 2005, Holdsworth developed a deep head wound and was taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center for treatment. Doctors there recommended that an ointment and a prescription be administered daily and that Holdsworth see a dermatologist. Three months later, the same untreated wound began streaming blood, and Holdsworth was returned to the Crozer-Chester emergency room. There workers received a shock when they removed her bandages and found more than 50 squirming maggots, according to court documents. [via DAILY NEWS]
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DOPES: Couples Sends $4,0000 Worth Of Blow Home From Peru In X-mas Cards
Philadelphia police say the phrase “White Christmas” took on a whole new meaning for a city couple accused of sending cocaine to family and friends in Christmas cards. Police allege that 41-year-old Grady Dennis was running a drug operation when he and his wife made a trip to Peru to buy the Christmas shipment. Narcotics Unit captain Christopher Werner says the cards were intercepted by federal agents. And then, he says, police made some special deliveries — to Dennis’ mother and to a friend of Dennis’, leading to two arrests.
“He’s trying to make a living through the illicit narcotics trade and he’s trying to use a method… I guess he’s imagining that it’s not going to be picked up because he is sending it through the mail. But that was not the case, obviously.” Federal agents discovered the cocaine when they x-rayed the cards. Police say they discovered four cards, each containing about $4,000 worth of high-quality cocaine. [via KYW]
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MISSING THE BIG PICTURE: Parking Authority Reality Show Ignores Rot At The Top
As though the embattled agency hasn’t received enough media exposure lately, a new documentary series starring the men and women of the Philadelphia Parking Authority will begin running on the A&E network early next year. But unlike recent headlines that have questioned payroll padding and high executive salaries at the agency, A&E’s 20-episode Parking Wars series will focus on the authority’s rank and file, and their charged encounters with an often irritated public.
“Unexpectedly, it’s a very humanizing portrait of blue-collar heroes trying to do a very difficult job,” said Robert Sharenow, an A&E Network senior vice president. The series won’t touch on the governor’s calls for a comprehensive performance audit of the agency, nor will it include the perspective of parents of public school students who have criticized the authority’s financial performance. “I didn’t even know it was going on,” Sharenow said of the recent controversies involving the authority. [via INQUIRER]