Jeffrey Feltner

While he continued to deny the murder charges, Feltner nonetheless pleaded guilty to two of the murders in order to avoid a potential death sentence. As part of the plea bargain, he would not be charged with the remaining murders and would serve a 25-years-to-life sentence at the Florida State Prison in Raiford. His mother later claimed that the sole reason he confessed was that his life could end quickly, as Feltner's AIDS had been getting progressively worse despite treatment with Aztreonam. As a result of this, he died on March 17, 1993.

Soon after his arrest, he was charged with the killings and put on trial for them in January 1990. To the investigators' surprise, Feltner recanted his testimony and claimed that he falsely confessed to the killings in order to bring attention to the appalling conditions and abuse that occurred at the nursing homes. This statement was supported by his parents, who voiced their belief that their son would never commit such a horrendous crime.

After his release on November 19, Feltner moved to Daytona Beach, where he lived in an apartment above a bar on Main Street. He soon found work at the Clyatt Memorial Center, where he was again hired as a supervisor for the nurse's aides. On July 11, 1989, 83-year-old Doris Moriarty, a longtime resident of the center, died suddenly. Her death was not considered suspicious at the time, as she had been in ill health for the past few years. A few days later, Feltner was fired for failing to show up at work, but soon found employment at the Bowman's Nursing Home in Ormond Beach. On July 27, a patient living in the nursing home, 81-year-old Ruby P. Swisher, died in what was originally considered a natural death.

From February to April 1988, five patients died at the New Life Acres nursing home under what were assumed to be natural circumstances. In July of that same year, Feltner anonymously contacted a crisis hotline and confessed to the five killings, claiming that he had an uncontrollable impulse to end their suffering and would probably kill again. These victims were the following:

In 1986, Feltner's mother helped him get a job at the New Life Acres nursing home in Melrose, where she worked as a nursing assistant. After only a few months on the job, he was promoted to supervising other nurses' aides and was greatly respected by both patients and staff. In 1987, Feltner temporarily quit his job for two months so he could locate his birth father, and after succeeding in doing so, he returned to Melrose and was rehired.

Jeffrey Lynn Feltner (November 21, 1962 – March 17, 1993) was an American serial killer and former nurse's aide who smothered seven patients to death from 1988 to 1989 at the hospitals he worked at. After initially confessing but later recanting his statements, he pleaded guilty to two of the murders in exchange for a 25-to-life sentence and no further charges in the other murders. A few years after his conviction, he died behind bars from AIDS complications.

Jeffrey Lynn Feltner was born on November 21, 1962, in Miami, Florida. His parents split up three months before his birth, with his father Kasper moving to Michigan while Feltner remained with his mother, Shirley. The pair moved to Melrose in 1979, where Feltner attended and later graduated from the Interlachen High School. Considered a loner by most of his peers, he started spending a majority of his time visiting gay bars and similar establishments around the area. During one sexual encounter, he contracted HIV, which progressively worsened over time.