GARDNER, Mass. — A 76-year-old patient at a Massachusetts hospital stabbed a nurse in the neck with a pocket knife, police said.
At the Greenville, New Hampshire man's arraignment on Tuesday, the judge entered not guilty pleas on his behalf to charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and attempt to commit a crime. He was held on $100,000 cash bail.
The suspect stabbed the nurse in the emergency room at Heywood Hospital in Gardner at about 8 p.m. Monday, police said. The nurse was adjusting the man's oxygen tube when he grabbed her and stabbed her, prosecutors said.
The nurse was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Massachusetts, for treatment of a roughly 3-inch (7.6-centimeter) long laceration, prosecutors said in court. The nurse's condition was not available.
The suspect's attorney said his client is not a flight risk, has significant health issues, and has been told he has six months to live.
“Violence against caregivers is not acceptable,” Heywood Healthcare CEO Rozanna Penney said in a statement. “In addition to the adoption of a zero-tolerance policy, expanded screening protocols are being assessed to ensure the safety of our caregivers and patients.”
