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The much-anticipated Netflix thriller, The Good Nurse, tells the story of serial killer Charles Cullen and depicts how he was brought to justice by a nurse named Amy Loughren. Cullen is a former nurse who, in the past, has worked at various hospitals, where he killed many patients by injecting them with deadly overdoses of digoxin and insulin, among other medications.
Cullen was ultimately sentenced to a total of 17 consecutive life terms for the murder of 29 patients. Read on to find out some of the most shocking details about Charles Cullen's crimes ahead of The Good Nurse's premiere on Wednesday.
1) Cullen's tumultuous childhood
Charles Cullen reportedly had a deeply troubled childhood. His father died when he was seven months old. Cullen was allegedly bullied by other kids at school, and he reportedly tried to take his life at the age of 9. At the age of 17, Cullen lost his mother in a car accident.
2) Struggles with mental health and suicidal tendencies
Charles Cullen reportedly suffered from depression for many years. After joining the navy, Cullen was allegedly bullied by other officers. He reportedly made an attempt to die by suicide and was committed to the Navy psychiatric ward. Cullen ultimately received a medical discharge from service.
Charles Cullen suffered another bout of depression after his divorce in 1993. During this time, he'd again made multiple attempts to die by suicide.
3) Violent behavior at home
Charles Cullen's ex-wife Adrienne Taub allegedly spoke about Cullen's erratic and alarming behavior in her divorce filing. Taub said that Cullen was extremely violent and cruel towards their pets and that she'd also begun to fear that her kids were in danger.
He allegedly burnt some of his daughter's books and also mixed lighter fluid in people's drinks. Taub later filed a restraining order against Cullen and the couple eventually divorced in 1993. Cullen also lost custody of his two daughters.
According to Crime + Investigation, Cullen's ex-wife also mentioned that he had once phoned a local funeral home and asked for their rates.
What happened to Charles Cullen?
Charles Cullen went on to murder at least 40 patients during the 16 years that he worked as a nurse at various hospitals. Some investigators believe that the actual count of victims could be close to 400.
After his arrest in December 2003—thanks to fellow nurse Amy Loughren, who spoke to the police about her suspicions regarding Cullen—he confessed to killing 40 patients, but only 29 were confirmed.
Cullen decided to help the authorities identify his victims after he got into a plea agreement, as per which prosecutors wouldn't seek the death penalty. He received 11 consecutive life sentences, apart from six more for his crimes in Pennsylvania. He is now serving his life sentence at the Trenton State Prison.
In the upcoming Netflix film on the subject, Charles Cullen is played by critically acclaimed actor Eddie Redmayne, with Jessica Chastain starring as nurse Amy Loughren. It is directed by Danish filmmaker Tobias Lindholm.
Don't forget to catch The Good Nurse on Netflix on Wednesday, October 26, 2022.
