MARYSVILLE — Prosecutors dropped a manslaughter charge against a Marysville man whose elderly mother died in 2012 while in his care.
Steven Murrill, 63, was scheduled to go to trial Monday. Instead, he pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal mistreatment, a felony. He faces up to a year in jail when he is sentenced in April.
While preparing for trial late last week, prosecutors questioned the medical examiner about his expected testimony. The medical examiner explained that he couldn’t rule out that cancer may have been the sole cause of Doris Murrill’s death. That was new information to prosecutors, who said they were compelled to re-evaluate the case.
“I don’t believe in going forward on cases where we have reasonable doubt and simply abdicating to jurors to make a decision,” Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Roe said Monday.
Doris Murrill, 83, was rushed to the hospital in July 2012. She was emaciated, incoherent, and had large open sores on her body. Her bed was covered with blood, urine and feces.
Steven Murrill told officers he was doing his best to care for his mother. He said she had fallen 45 days earlier and injured her hip, according to court papers. He told investigators she refused to go to a doctor. The defendant also said he didn’t call an ambulance sooner because that would cost “$800 a pop.”
Doris Murrill was hospitalized and diagnosed with multiple open sores and a broken femur. She also was malnourished and dehydrated. She died Oct. 18, 2012.
An autopsy concluded that she died from multiple complications, including pneumonia and sepsis, the body’s reaction to severe infection. The autopsy also said that malnutrition, anemia, and cancer were contributing factors to her death.
Her death was classified a homicide.
Steven Murrill was charged with first-degree manslaughter and criminal mistreatment. He’s been out of custody pending trial.
Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Matt Hunter was reviewing potential jury instructions last week and asked the medical examiner specifics about the cause of death. Hunter was told that abuse more than likely contributed to the woman’s death, but a reasonable alternative could be that the undiagnosed cancer was responsible.
It was the first time the medical examiner had described the case in those terms.
Prosecutors discussed the case and, in keeping with the law, brought the new information to defense attorney Mark Mestel’s attention. Roe and others in his office concluded that they needed to drop the manslaughter charge.
“This isn’t a decision where we didn’t think we could prove he was guilty. This is because we were no longer certain that he is responsible for the death,” Roe said. “We’re not going to dump that in a jury’s lap.”
Steven Murrill admitted Monday that his reckless actions created a risk of death or great bodily harm to his mother.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463, hefley@heraldnet.com.
Twitter: @dianahefley
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