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In this week’s Westword, reporter Alan Prendergast investigates the gnarly addiction and spotty oversight that led to dozens of patients at Rose Medical Center being infected with hepatitis C. The offending junkie, Kristen Parker (right), has earned the contempt of all of Denver. But she’s not alone.
Here, the five most reviled alleged criminals of 2009 (so far). They’re in no particular order; revulsion is a personal, subjective thing, and we don’t want to be telling you who you want to shank the most. But we can probably all agree that these people, should they be convicted of the crimes for which they were accused, have earned a special place in the rage-filled corners of our hearts.
Kristen Parker
Parker, of course, is the former Rose Medical surgery technician accused of infecting 19 patients with hepatits C in one of the most classically pathetic junkie crimes of all time. Prosecutors say Parker, 26, routinely stole the powerful drug Fentanyl, shot herself up and then replaced the drug with saline. That saline, infected with hepatitis C, was then injected into the patients. Classy, right?
The early over/under on the number of people who will try to attack Parker should she go to trial is 47.5. We’ll take the over.
Quincy Vanderbilt
Don’t be fooled by the fancy name: Quincy Vanderbilt is a grade-A moron. At the height of the Denver summer, Vanderbilt, 24, and his no-doubt pitchy girlfriend traveled from North Dakota for an American Idol tryout at Invesco Field. They brought along their small terrier, but Vanderbilt left the dog in the car while his girlfriend tried out. The dog — not exactly genetically designed to survive heat, what with it being covered in fur and all — roasted to death.
Vanderbilt was charged with animal cruelty and will one day be sentenced to an eternity in the back of a 1979 Chrysler LeBaron. Seats: leather. Windows: up. On the radio: the Lifehouse album of your choice.
Shawn Merriman
