Nurse pleads guilty in sex assault of incapacitated woman

A former Arizona nurse has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting an incapacitated woman about three years ago at a long-term care facility where she later gave birth

PHOENIX -- A former Arizona nurse has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting an incapacitated woman about three years ago at a long-term care facility where she later gave birth. Nathan Sutherland also entered a guilty plea Thursday to a charge of abuse of a vulnerable adult stemming from his treatment of the woman. The plea agreement calls for a sentence of 5 1/4 to 10 years in prison on the sexual assault conviction and lifetime probation on the other conviction. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 4. The pregnancy was discovered in December 2018 when an employee at the Hacienda Healthcare facility in Phoenix was changing the garments of the then-29-year-old victim and noticed the patient was in the process of delivering a child. Employees told police that they had no idea the woman was pregnant. Police have said Sutherland’s DNA matched a sample taken from the woman’s son. The victim’s mother is the boy’s guardian.