Episode 280: Murder For God's Will

Elizabeth Wettlaufer, a 45-year-old nurse from Ontario, voluntarily confessed to killing eight elderly patients in long-term care homes between 2007 and 2014—claiming she was acting on divine command. Her confession, delivered in a calm, matter-of-fact tone, stunned police who initially doubted her due to her unassuming appearance and lack of prior suspicion. Wettlaufer, a closeted lesbian raised in a strict Baptist household, struggled with severe mental illness, opioid addiction, and deep-seated shame. She used her access to insulin—untracked and unsecured in nursing homes—to murder patients she disliked, often injecting them during night shifts. Despite multiple red flags—alcohol on her breath, erratic behavior, and medication errors—her employers failed to act, even firing her and giving her a $2,000 settlement and a glowing reference. She told multiple people, including a pastor and online friends, about her crimes, but no one reported her. Her eventual confession came after a friend threatened to call police, and she turned herself in while still planning to attend AA meetings. She was sentenced to eight consecutive life sentences with parole eligibility after 25 years—despite the gravity of her crimes. The case exposed systemic failures in Ontario’s long-term care system, including lax medication tracking and poor oversight, leading to 91 recommendations for reform.