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‘I couldn’t see her in pain’: Woman charged with attempted murder after turning off mother’s life support machine

The 78-year-old woman is alive after nurses turned the machine back on

Danielle Zoellner
New York
Wednesday 26 February 2020 22:23 GMT
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A woman was arrested for attempted murder after she turned off her mother's life support ventilator briefly
A woman was arrested for attempted murder after she turned off her mother's life support ventilator briefly (Gladwin County Sheriff's Office)

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A woman has been charged with attempted murder after she briefly turned off her mother's life support machine.

Corrine Damm, 59, of Michigan reportedly was charged with murder after she confessed to police to cutting the tubes and turning off her mother's ventilator at Gladwin Pines Nursing & Rehabilitation, MLive.com first reported.

The 78-year-old woman survived after staff at the hospital heard the ventilator beeping and turned it back on about 60 seconds later.

When speaking to police, Ms Damm said she couldn't watch her mother "in all the pain" anymore.

The incident occurred on 1 February and was later reported to Gladwin police by Ms Damm.

"Corinne advised her mother said she can't do this anymore and that she wanted to die," according to an interview with police. "Corinne advised it wasn't like she was trying to plan a mercy killing, she just could not watch her mother in all the pain."

Her mother lived with Ms Damm at their home until March 2019, she told police. Since then, the mother has been in and out of different medical facilities because of her health.

The woman's diagnosis has not been revealed.

Ms Damm is currently free on bond following her arrest earlier this month.

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