On Tuesday, November 21, the Michigan Board of Nursing Disciplinary Subcommittee voted to permanently revoke the registered nursing license of Judith Sobol, 43, formerly of South Haven, for having been convicted of Second-Degree Murder in the death of a patient under her care, announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
On June 20, 2022, Sobol, a registered nurse, appeared for her scheduled overnight evening shift to provide care to a 3-year-old ventilator dependent female child while being under the influence of methamphetamines. During the early morning hours, the child’s parents discovered Sobol incoherent and the child unresponsive and her trachea tube disconnected. Resuscitation efforts by the parents and medical personnel were unsuccessful. Sobol later admitted to Coloma Township Police Department Officers that she had taken methamphetamines on the day she came to work. Law enforcement then located 2 methamphetamine pipes and a small container of crystal methamphetamine in her purse.
“This was a tragic murder, and our hearts go out to the victim’s family who lost their child,” said Nessel. “In addition to her very lengthy prison sentence, Sobol will never practice healthcare again. No family should ever experience this horror at the hands of a medical professional, and here the board fulfilled their duty to protect the integrity of the profession and the safety of patients.”
On behalf of the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), the Department of Attorney General issued an administrative complaint against Sobol in November 2022 based upon the alleged misconduct and LARA summarily suspended Sobol’s registered nursing license. The administrative complaint alleged that Sobol’s conduct violated the Public Health Code, and more specifically constituted a violation of general duty, incompetence, lack of good moral character, and personal disqualifications consisting of substance use disorder and a physical or mental condition adversely affecting her ability to practice in a safe and competent manner. Sobol did not respond to the administrative complaint and was deemed in default. The Board of Nursing Disciplinary Subcommittee issued an order on February 10, 2023, revoking her license and imposing against her a $150,000 fine. Pursuant to the Public Health Code, the Disciplinary Subcommittee imposed the maximum period of revocation allowed, but Sobol was eligible to petition for reinstatement of her nursing license after 3-years and payment of the $150,000 fine.
Subsequently, Sobol was convicted by a Berrien County jury of Second-Degree Murder and in May of this year was sentenced to 30 to 75 years’ incarceration, a sentence she is currently serving at the State’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility. Following the conviction, the Department of Attorney General, on behalf of LARA, issued a second administrative complaint in August 2023 based upon the 2nd-Degree Murder conviction as it constitutes a separate violation of the Public Health Code that allows for a sanction of permanent revocation to be imposed. Sobol did not respond to this second administrative complaint and was deemed in default. As such, the Board of Nursing Disciplinary Subcommittee issued an order in November 2023 permanently revoking her nursing license.
