Hospital: Nurse involved in Kate hoax call found dead
LONDON - A nurse who fell victim to a prank telephone call seeking information about the Duchess of Cambridge's pregnancy has died, a hospital said Friday.
Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found dead early Friday at apartments affiliated with King Edward VII hospital in central London, where she worked for four years.
The death is being treated as unexplained, but police did not find anything suspicious. It will be up to a coroner to decide how she died. Several news organizations, including CNN and ABC News, are reporting that she apparently committed suicide.
2DayFM, the Australian station that performed the prank early Tuesday, said in a statement posted on Facebook and Twitter that two disc jockeys, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, would not return to the station until further notice. They had apologized for the hoax Wednesday.
Saldanha took the hoax call by the pair, who impersonated Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles to elicit information on the duchess, the hospital said. Saldanha later transferred the call to the nurse caring for the duchess, who was admitted to the hospital Monday with acute morning sickness.
"Our thoughts and deepest sympathies at this time are with her family and friends," hospital chief executive John Lofthouse said in a statement. "Everyone is shocked by the loss of a much loved and valued colleague."
St. James's Palace, the office of the duchess and her husband Prince William, also expressed sadness at the death, but insisted that it had not complained about the hoax.
"On the contrary, we offered our full and heartfelt support to the nurses involved and hospital staff at all times," the palace said in a statement.
During the hoax call, a woman using the often-mimicked voice of Britain's monarch asked about the duchess' health. She was told by the second nurse who took the call from Saldanha that the duchess, the former Kate Middleton, "hasn't had any retching with me and she's been sleeping on and off."
The nurse went on to tell the personalities that the duchess had had an uneventful night, as a dog barking sound was heard in the background. The alleged queen and prince talk about traveling to the hospital to check in on the patient.
The hospital said it supported Saldanha in the aftermath of the call and that its phone protocols were under review.
The Australian station placed the recording of the conversation on its website, but later said it was sorry.
"We were very surprised that our call was put through. We thought we'd be hung up on as soon as they heard our terrible accents," Greig and Christian said in a joint statement with the station at the time. "We're very sorry if we've caused any issues and we're glad to hear that Kate is doing well."
The station's chief executive officer, Rhys Holleran, had spoken with the presenters after the nurse's death, and that both were deeply shocked. The hosts "have decided that they will not return to their radio show until further notice out of respect for what can only be described as a tragedy."
Christian's Twitter account has since been taken down.
Officials from St. James's Palace have said the duchess is not yet 12 weeks pregnant. The child would be the first for her and Prince William.
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Associated Press writers Paisley Dodds contributed to this story.
Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found dead early Friday at apartments affiliated with King Edward VII hospital in central London, where she worked for four years.
The death is being treated as unexplained, but police did not find anything suspicious. It will be up to a coroner to decide how she died. Several news organizations, including CNN and ABC News, are reporting that she apparently committed suicide.
2DayFM, the Australian station that performed the prank early Tuesday, said in a statement posted on Facebook and Twitter that two disc jockeys, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, would not return to the station until further notice. They had apologized for the hoax Wednesday.
Saldanha took the hoax call by the pair, who impersonated Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles to elicit information on the duchess, the hospital said. Saldanha later transferred the call to the nurse caring for the duchess, who was admitted to the hospital Monday with acute morning sickness.
"Our thoughts and deepest sympathies at this time are with her family and friends," hospital chief executive John Lofthouse said in a statement. "Everyone is shocked by the loss of a much loved and valued colleague."
St. James's Palace, the office of the duchess and her husband Prince William, also expressed sadness at the death, but insisted that it had not complained about the hoax.
"On the contrary, we offered our full and heartfelt support to the nurses involved and hospital staff at all times," the palace said in a statement.
During the hoax call, a woman using the often-mimicked voice of Britain's monarch asked about the duchess' health. She was told by the second nurse who took the call from Saldanha that the duchess, the former Kate Middleton, "hasn't had any retching with me and she's been sleeping on and off."
The nurse went on to tell the personalities that the duchess had had an uneventful night, as a dog barking sound was heard in the background. The alleged queen and prince talk about traveling to the hospital to check in on the patient.
The hospital said it supported Saldanha in the aftermath of the call and that its phone protocols were under review.
The Australian station placed the recording of the conversation on its website, but later said it was sorry.
"We were very surprised that our call was put through. We thought we'd be hung up on as soon as they heard our terrible accents," Greig and Christian said in a joint statement with the station at the time. "We're very sorry if we've caused any issues and we're glad to hear that Kate is doing well."
The station's chief executive officer, Rhys Holleran, had spoken with the presenters after the nurse's death, and that both were deeply shocked. The hosts "have decided that they will not return to their radio show until further notice out of respect for what can only be described as a tragedy."
Christian's Twitter account has since been taken down.
Officials from St. James's Palace have said the duchess is not yet 12 weeks pregnant. The child would be the first for her and Prince William.
___
Associated Press writers Paisley Dodds contributed to this story.
Maybe they're just pranking them right back??
Let them eat cake, eh you 'royal' ...... if I say it the comment will be deleted. Royalty can kiss my red blooded backside.
The "Jackass" or "Beavis and Butthead "slant within the media is not mature, professional, or clever. Hopefully these two in Australia will not be working again on the air anywhere.Â
This comment has been deleted
 @Bobby BrownÂ
As of this moment, there are no reports that the nurse committed suicide.
Sad that this happened, but there was a major earthquake in Japan last night and this story bumped it off the front page? I just don't understand why people care about the things they care about.
 @jowsuf That's what I was thinking. Where the heck is the article that talks about the 7.3 earthquake in Japan?
 @Koreanman012  @jowsuf What.......Really......... there was an earthquake? I don't watch t.v. and this is my only way of getting the news, I would rather know about an earthquake.
Scratch that, KOMO didn't even report it. Unbelievable.
Given the amount of devotion the Brits have for this young couple and the fact that this whole incident went global so quickly this nurse may have felt overwhelmed with guilt. This whole thing is so sad and was so unnecessary.
Sad the nurse died.
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On a somewhat related note, this probably would never have happened if it had not been related to "royalty."Â I'll never understand the concept of allowing royalty to exist in this day and age. There's no way it generates more tax money than it costs to maintain them and the entire concept is anathema to a modern democracy where everyone is equal. The French knew how to deal with people who thought they were above everyone else, though in our "more civilized age" the right thing to do would be strip them of all their titles and lands and give everything to the people, then force them to go get regular jobs and live normal lives like everyone else.Â
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 @NorthwestEconomist They actually have jobs, you know. The Queen is not only a figurehead but a working member of the state. The princes are in the military. And if you know ANYTHING about French history, you will admit that following the Revolution came a period called 'the Terror' when more than 40,000 people were guillotined in less than 10 months because they were accused of being anti-revolutionary (killed without proof, often enough). I hardly call that civilized. The English had the 'Bloodless Revolution'. Look it up. It's still a revolution. They WANT their royal family. They choose to KEEP their royal family. Now shut up and be happy for the Duke and Duchess.
 @SouthofSeattle  @NorthwestEconomist They? So I won't find any anti-royalists in the UK eh? Lets ask the Irish how they feel about them and all the trouble they had.
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Their jobs are a joke. And the fact that their kids are gifted perfect lives and automatic jobs just by being born is disgusting.
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As for being head of state that should alarm everyone. The Queen of the UK is also the head of state for Canada and even dissolved their parliament a few times against the wishes of some MPs.
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Royalty is a relic of the past and should be discarded. I think many Britons, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Canadians and others would agree.
 @SouthofSeattle  @NorthwestEconomist Just ask Brian Mulrooney or the NDP how they feel about a foreign monarch being able to shut down their government. As far as Ireland goes that's a lot of death and oppression for the vanity and pride of a silly bunch of aristocrats. Oh wait, that's the reason behind most of the world and Euro-conflicts historically too... I suppose you think that the Archduke Ferdinand was a football player or something.
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The French Revolution was a bit messy, but the sentiment of "let them bow their heads to die as we would bow as they roll by" was spot on in terms of just desserts for hundreds of years of death and mindless oppression.Why do you think the French still celebrate Bastille Day? The Brits would have kept their royalty away too if Cromwell hadn't been excessive.
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As far as the "horrors" of the aftermath of the french revolution I have this to say: there was relatively little death and mayhem compared to the myriad wars the nobility of France/Britain/Germany/Spain would engage in just because they were bored or insane. Or did you miss taking world history in high-school?
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 @NorthwestEconomist Every Canadian I have ever spoken to loves their figurehead. Jokes aside, they don't have perfect lives. I would love to see you live under that kind of social scrutiny. And you still mentioned nothing about your ignorant comments about the French. Chapeau!
 @NorthwestEconomist "never understand the concept of allowing royalty to exist in this day and age."
OK...but isn't that up to the people who live under it and have to support it?
"Our" form of government is not the only valid and workable form in the world...
 @NorthwestEconomist Actually, the brit's make tons of money in tourism because of their royalty.
You mess with the queen, you get dead. No questions asked....
RIP to the nurse. Sometimes, pranks can lead to unfortunate events. I'm guessing that this nurse didn't commit suicide solely based on the prank itself. She was probably mentally unstable to some degree before the prank even happened. I'm sure the hospital reprimanded her actions. The prank probably exacerbated an underlying issue she had and led to her suicide.
 @Koreanman012Â
Why is it that you automatically assumed that Ms. Saldanha was "mentally unstable"?
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If Great Britain has a HIPAA equivalent that has equivalent penalties for violation, it could very well have driven her to to a point where she felt death was the preferable option that being tried, convicted & punished.Â
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In the US, a person who is found guilty of violating HIPAA can face a PERSONAL civil penalty of up to $50,000.00 AND they can ALSO face criminal penalties of an additional $50,000 AND up to 1 year in jail - all for a first offense/first HIPAA violation.
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Those penalties, as well as being known for the rest of her life as the person who disclosed the information could hve easily overwhelmed her.
Well, I wasn't saying she was definitely mentally unstable. I was just thinking she could've been and it could've contributed to her suicidal decision. As was mentioned by someone else, the hospital never reprimanded her actions and the royal family did not say anything to her. We don't know for sure if the HIPAA violation in Great Britain is the same as the US. As was my speculation, your input is also speculation.
@Koreanman012Â
Finally found it.
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In Great Britain, it is called the Data Protection Act. It is MUCH more far-reaching than HIPAA is. The starting financial penality (as noted in 2009; it is currently being updated to push it higher) is 500,000 pounds. It is administered by the ICO (Information Commissioner's Office), and allows for both civil and criminal penalties.
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They hvae a specific section dealing with "the reckless or deliberate breach of information" and "unlawful obtaining of data".
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So, it appears what I have heard is correct - thei DPA is MUCH more punative than HIPAA, and from what I read, they are in the process of making it even MORE monetarily painful.
@Koreanman012Â
Actually, from what I have been told, their privacy laws are stricted than in the US. True I am speculating, as I have not yet been able to find their legal equivalent of HIPAA, but I was using it as a general comparison to show the seriouslness & what would have happened if they had done it here.
 @LocalLady  @Koreanman012 Agreed - but what of the pranksters?
 @orcasthunder:Â
I addressed that further down (up?), currently the next to last post here, in response to former marine sgt - in a nutshell, up to $350,000 maximum each and up to 15 years in federal detention each.
@Koreanman012 According to the Sydney and London News, the nurse was not reprimanded and was being supported by the hospital. Sydney news also states that the two involved have been taken off the air "until further notice".
 @Gottadance  @Koreanman012 Yeah...that's appropriate punishment for an act that results in death...they should at the very least be subject to legal suit, just like a bully who's taunts lead to a suicide can be held responsible in court...
 @Protagonist "Where was the taunting? Where was the "bullying?""
What was it about the words "JUST like a bully"?
Their actions were hurtful, not "lame and innocuous". If you make a 911 call about a "prowler" who doesn't exist, you can be held responsible if an innocent person - or a cop - is shot because they came out to investigate, and someone made a mistake in the dark.
 @OrcasThunder   Where was the taunting? Where was the "bullying?"
Yes, this is a tragic outcome, but honestly, what the DJs did was a pretty tame and innocuous phone prank. They called impersonating the queen of England, miraculously got through, and asked about the Kate.Â
If it was suicide that seems like an extreme over reaction to the situation. Â How sad for her family.
Hope the DJs aren't charged. But we are talking about one country that believes self defense is a felony and another country that banned small breasts in pornography because it might encourage pedophilia.
I mean, c'mon. Are they even trying to make this stuff seem coincidental anymore?
Queen did it!!!!!
This is sad to read first thing in the morning. Here is a nurse doing what she loves, probably feeling the highlight of her career helping the royal family, and the d-bags from Australia pull this stunt and throw her world into disarray making her doubt herself enough to make this decision. This should not have happened. Nurses are needed in the world more than a damn DJ.
It's a sad story, but are the DJ's really culpable? I don't think anyone in their right mind would commit suicide over being pranked. Sure the prank might have been a little juvenile but it should have been harmless. I think that the nurse was already very depressed or it wasn't suicide.
 @scott:Â
If Great Britain has a HIPAA equivalent that has equivalent penalties for violation, it could very well have driven her to to a point where she felt death was the preferable option that being tried, convicted & punished.Â
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In the US, a person who is found guilty of violating HIPAA can face a PERSONAL civil penalty of up to $50,000.00 AND they can ALSO face criminal penalties of an additional $50,000 AND up to 1 year in jail - all for a first offense/first HIPAA violation.
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Those penalties, as well as being known for the rest of her life as the person who disclosed the information could hve easily overwhelmed her.
@Scott -- "are the DJ's really culpable?"
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here's my opinion:
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Yes, they are culpable. They committed a crime of impersonation and fraud to illegally obtain access to people and information that they would not otherwise have been able to get.   When you commit a crime, you are culpable for the results of that crime.Â
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'pranks' like this are pathetic.  and I don't care if this was the Royal Family, a President of any country, or Joe dipstick down the street.
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I hope that thier 'chuckle fest' at the expense of a human being's life was worth it. I wonder how the math works?   How many chuckles does it take to make it worth a death?
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Yeah, I know 'they didn't mean it'.  But damm, 'they didn't mean it' wouldn't work in any court of law.
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 @Scott Are the people who bullied Amanda Todd until she committed suicide not culpable? People need to learn that they are responsible for anything they do or are involved in, even if they think its funny or not.
 @Scott To someone that could have been struggling with depression- a world wide scandal like that, where her voice was played all over the world, and receiving that scrutiny I think certainly could have played a role. That poor, poor woman and her family.
 @LeslieLouAnn Oh, don't get me wrong, if it was suicide, I'm sure the prank played a role in her death. I'm sure the DJ's are going to have a difficult time with the outcome as well. I was more addressing that I would hate to see any criminal charges come up. I also don't believe they should be fired for this as well.
 horrible journalism. Not very funny at all
Another (2nd one today for me) piece of bad journalism on the untimely death of a nurse. The text and photos are about the "royal family" but the headline indicates it's about a nurse's death. More bad reporting with the focus on
celebrities and the nurses death was just a minor thing that happened.
I would think that for the nurse to have comitted suicide, she'd have to have been 1/2 a mental case already. Yes, the event was terribly embarassing, but suicide as a result? Has me wondering if she wasn't 'helped' along by someone.
@Commenter87643 :Â
Also, she could have been perfectly fine, no depression at all, but facing a HIPAA vilolation could have felt overwhelmed.
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If Great Britain has a HIPAA equivalent that has equivalent penalties for violation, it could very well have driven her to to a point where she felt death was the preferable option that being tried, convicted & punished.Â
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In the US, a person who is found guilty of violating HIPAA can face a PERSONAL civil penalty of up to $50,000.00 AND they can ALSO face criminal penalties of an additional $50,000 AND up to 1 year in jail - all for a first offense/first HIPAA violation.
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Those penalties, as well as being known for the rest of her life as the person who disclosed the information could hve easily overwhelmed her.
 @LocalLady  @Commenter87643 As the 'royals' weren't upset with her over the violation of the HIPAA, then I seriously doubt prosecution was likely to happen.
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Still and all, suicide as a reaction is absolute indication of mental instability. SANE people do not kill themselves, in fact people can be held against their will if they're shown to be a danger to themselves.
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I don't know why you are so stuck on suicide being a sane thing to do.
 @LocalLady  @commenter87643: If someone, even in the heat of things simply can't see more than one possible scenario, then they were some what off the beam to begin with.
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Yes, she MIGHT face civil & criminal charges. No where do we read that a person MUST be prosecuted for giving information to the wrong party, particularly where no harm is done. She truly believed she was talking to the queen and prince and I doubt any jury would convict her in criminal or civil court. In many places it would be just too outrageous to suspect someone of impersonating the king or queen as it carries heft fines and possibilities of imprisonment.
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There would have been a LOT of water yet to go under the bridge before she ever had to contemplate 'lock up' IF it ever happened.
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Yes, the press over there are hounds but since they've recently been at odds with the royalty themselves, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the palace had offered her guards to help her through her nightmare.
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Something so terrible might have been turned into something quite nice for her (a cushy private job perhaps). All she did was make a SMALL mistake, and apparently everyone at the hospital and all the royalty were quite nice about it.
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Maybe you could stop playing 'in her shoes' for awhile and get out a bit in the real world!
 @commenter87643:Â
Nowhere did I say that it WAS a "sane thing".Â
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I am simplky trying to point out that she may not have been "1/2 mental" (your words), "mentally instable" (again, your words) or a danger to herself.
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She may have simply become overwhelmed by the situation and fgelt that there was no other option for her.
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Re-read what I wrote - ALL of it - and try to put yourself in her place. A simply phone call that she thought was her Sovereign turns out to be a prank, and all hell breaks loose [publicly, she is facing possible criminal and civil charges & penalties totally possibly more than she would ever earn in her lifetime. Very likely the media is hounding her & her family.
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How would YOU "rationally" respond? Simply ignore everything? Write a check to cover the fines? Smile & pack your toothbraush as you head of to federal lock up?
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 @LocalLady Suicide is NOT sane, PERIOD.
 @Commenter87643Â
"....
 in fact people can be held against their will if they're shown to be a danger to themselves.
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I don't know why you are so stuck on suicide being a sane thing to do ...."
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Nobody has yet reported that she had shown she was a danger to herself, nor am a "stuck on suicide being a sane thing to do".
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Whether the Royals were upset or not would not matter.
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If their system is set up like ours, it would be a violation of federal law, and the federal agency in charge (HHS) would pursue it independently, whether a complaint was filed or not. Any complaint filed would be considered a civil; matter while the actual violation of the federal law would be considered a criminal matter. Ms. Saldanha, if she had similar training to what we receive , would have been aware of the fact that she could be held both CIVILLY liable as well as CRIMINALLY liable.
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Even a perfectly sane, non-depressed person could feel completely overwhelmed by the maximum penalty that COULD be applied (the infamous "worst case scenario" that people talk about), and irrationally feel that suicide would be the lesser of two evils - rather than facing the maximum penalties AND being known for the rest of her life as the nurse who disclose the information.
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 @Commenter87643Â
Wow.Â
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So, just because someone possi bly committed suicide, yo determine them to be "1/2 mental"?
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You are obviously not someone who know much about what can drive people to suiicide, nor have ever had someone close to you committ suicide.
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Try a little empathy instead of judging & snarky comments.
 @LocalLady I was being empathetic! YES, suicidal people are NOT sane!
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I DO know this because I have BEEN suicidal.
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I think there are probably quite a few mental health professionals that would agree that only if something else were going on in a person's life would they choose to suicide over an understandable mistake.
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I think it's as likely she was murdered as likely she killed herself given the situation.
 @ALTemp Thanks! You too!
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I do remember before I got depressed thinking, 'how can anyone that wants to kill themselves not -know- that they are nuts and in need of help???' and then later, thinking 'well yeah, it IS nuts but what help is there?', cuz there sure didn't seem to be any. And I don't know if I'm 'blessed' or really, just 'lucky' that I'm finally out of that hole.
 @Commenter87643  I'm glad to know that you are still here to say that you HAVE been suicidal. So many people cannot work themselves out of the hole that leads to thoughts of suicide. Depression....been there, done that. It was like a black hole of downward progression. I remember actually feeling as though there was no way I'd ever be happy again....and each day was a new level of internal hell. Sucked......
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Keep swimming.Â
 @Commenter87643 It's actually deeper then what Komo is reporting......take a look: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244608/Jacintha-Saldanha-Excellent-nurse-took-Kate-Middleton-hoax-phone-dead-suspected-suicide.html
 @ALTemp Yeah, the last paragraph of that is "Officers from Scotland Yard launched an investigation yesterday and are treating the death as âunexplainedâ."