David Kwiatkowski, Serial Hepatitis C Infector, Sentenced to 39 Years in Prison
David Kwiatkowski was sentenced to 39 years behind bars Monday for infecting 46 people with the Hepatitis C virus he carried and stealing painkillers. Kwiatkowski worked at a medical technician in various hospitals and claimed he was addicted to the drugs and alcohol.
David Kwiatkowski worked as a traveling cardiac technologist in 18 hospitals, being fired at least four times for drug use and theft. He was hired at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire in 2011, and that's the state the majority of his victims came from: 32 were infected there, another seven contracted Hep C in Maryland, six more came down with the same strain in Kansas, and the last one in Pennsylvania.
The traveler would steal painkillers and replace them with syringes tainted with his infected blood, according to the Associated Press. Hepatitis C can cause liver disease and other chronic health problems, and killed one of his victims, police said.
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"There's no excuse for what I've done," Kwiatkowski said in court before his sentencing. "I know the pain and suffering I've caused."
Victims and their families attended the sentencing after the serial infector plead guilty to federal drug charges Aug. 16. Kwiatkowski said he had been stealing drugs since 2003 and swapping the syringes since 2008, but never intended to harm others with Hepatitis C.
"You may only be facing drug charges, but make no mistake, you are a serial killer," Kathleen Murry of Elmira, N.Y. said in place of her mother, who was too sick to attend.
"You ultimately gave my mother a death sentence," said Ronnie Murphy, referring to his mother Eleanor. Hepatitis C contributed to his mother's death.
Kwiatkowski never had a criminal record- previous employers handled his issues as personal problems, not criminal ones- which allowed him to keep working as a medical technician. In addition, it means he could not receive a higher sentence than the 40-year term prosecutors asked for.
"It is important to recognize and remember as you spend the next 39 years in prison to focus on the one year you didn't get and try to develop that capacity (for mercy and compassion) in yourself," Judge Joseph Laplante told the serial infector.
