Utah Nurse Charged with Murder in Alleged Insulin-Induced Death
Authorities in Utah have arrested and charged a registered nurse, Meggan Randall Sundwall, in connection with the death of 38-year-old Kacee Lynn Terry. Sundwall is accused of administering an unprescribed dose of insulin to Terry, leading to her death, and allegedly fabricating a cancer diagnosis to gain access to Terry’s life insurance policy. Sundwall faces charges of first-degree felony aggravated murder and obstruction of justice.
Investigators believe Sundwall, 47, was the beneficiary of a $1.5 million life insurance policy held by Terry, whom she claimed to befriend. According to court documents, the pair exchanged thousands of text messages since 2019. In these messages, Terry seemed to believe she had cancer. Sundwall allegedly discussed how she would end her own life if she were in Terry’s position. Additionally, the texts touched on Sundwall’s financial troubles and how Terry’s life insurance policy would solve them, which investigators referred to as ‘rumored.’
Authorities became suspicious after Terry’s uncle contacted first responders about a medical emergency at Terry’s home. Terry’s uncle reported finding her unresponsive in her bedroom, as Deseret News detailed. Sundwall, present at the scene and claiming to be the only other person there, stated Terry had been unconscious for a couple of hours and had a do-not-resuscitate order. However, first responders noted a diabetic needle at the scene and transported Terry to a local hospital.
Doctors discovered Terry’s blood sugar level was extremely low – 14. Medical staff pronounced Terry dead three days later. An autopsy revealed that Terry had neither cancer nor any other health issues. The medical examiner concluded that Terry died from an overdose of the allergy medication promethazine and, the most likely cause, an insulin overdose. This insulin was administered to Terry from outside her body, alongside other drugs.
According to the Deseret News, police interviewed a forensic pathologist who stated that administering insulin was the only way to reduce a person’s blood sugar level to that of Terry’s. Furthermore, court documents cited by the Utah news stations KUTV and KTVX indicated that Terry had never prepared a do-not-resuscitate order, nor had she appointed Sundwall to make medical decisions on her behalf.
Following Terry’s death, police discovered Sundwall had sought information about Terry’s life insurance and deleted over 900 texts from her phone, reportedly to mislead investigators. However, police revealed a text from Sundwall to Terry on the day she was hospitalized, asking: “Do you want to take some promethazine when I get there so that you are asleep when this is happening?” The investigators also found evidence that Sundwall attempted to convince Terry to end her life with a fatal dose of insulin, according to the Deseret News.
Sundwall was charged with Terry’s murder on Thursday. Court records indicate she was ordered held without bail pending a pretrial hearing. In Utah, first-degree felony aggravated murder carries a sentence between 25 years and life imprisonment, and prosecutors have the option of pursuing the death penalty. However, in Sundwall’s case, prosecutors have not yet announced a decision about the death penalty.
Utah state records indicate that Sundwall has held a nursing license since at least 2007. Records also show that she graduated with an associate’s degree from Utah Valley State in 2006 and do not list any disciplinary actions against her.
Terry’s obituary describes her as someone who enjoyed the outdoors, hunting, and camping. She loved babysitting, “filled the role of mom to many kids,” and hoped to have her own family one day.
