LEWISTON, Idaho — 54-year-old Sandra McCarty of Las Vegas was arrested Thursday, charged with first-degree attempted murder of her own father, an 81-year-old receiving care at the Idaho State Veterans Home in Lewiston.
Staff called 911 just after 8 a.m. when a nurse aid walked in the room and saw McCarty straddling her dad on his bed with her hands covering his nose and mouth, according to court documents.
She yelled at McCarty to get off, and once she jumped off the bed, her father said, "She's trying to kill me."
Court documents say McCarty was gone before police showed up. They interviewed her dad and found bruises on his body that weren't there the day before.
The 81-year-old told police the nurse aid saved his life and that before she entered the room, another nurse aid came in and saw McCarty on top of him, but left when his daughter said everything was okay, according to court documents.
A few hours later, McCarty was interviewed at the Lewiston Police Station. There, she told detectives it was all a misunderstanding.
McCarty said she thought her dad was dying and noticed the mask for his CPAP machine was not on correctly. She told detectives she jumped on the bed in a state of panic to put his mask on, but he was resisting, according to documents.
The 81-year-old told police his daughter said "I'm gonna take you out" while her hands covered his nose and mouth.
The motive is still unclear. Her bond has been set at $500,000.
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