Donald Harvey’s Cyanide Nose Exposure

A nurse named Donald Harvey killed 37 of his patients and was only caught because a medical examiner performing an autopsy on one victim had the rare genetic ability to smell cyanide. Harvey worked as a nurse’s aide in hospitals in Ohio and Kentucky between 1970 and 1987, quietly poisoning patients with chemicals such as cyanide and arsenic. In 1987, an autopsy on patient John Powell revealed the faint almond-like smell of cyanide, a telltale sign that alerted the examiner to poisoning. The discovery triggered a deeper investigation into deaths connected to Harvey’s hospital work. Authorities soon uncovered that Harvey was a serial killer responsible for at least 37 murders, ending a killing spree that had lasted nearly two decades.

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