Famous doctor's warped excuse for strangling wife and dumping her in pond
A surgeon who strangled his wife before throwing her away "like a bag of trash" has shared his excuse during sentencing, in an apology to the deceased.
Back in April, Ingolf 'Harry' Tuerk, a once prominent doctor from Dover, Massachusetts, was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter instead of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Kathleen McLean. The court heard how Tuerk, who was sentenced to 12 to 16 years behind bars, strangled 45-year-old Kathleen and "disposed of her body in a pond and weighed her down with rocks".
Testifying during his trial, Tuerk, 63, told the court that he hadn't intended to harm mum of three Kathleen, whom he'd married just five months before her death on May 15, 2020.
CBS News reports that Tuerk confessed to putting his hands on Kathleen's neck but stated that he had been defending himself during a fight, in which he claimed she'd thrown a glass at him. Tuerk, the former head of urology at Boston's St. Elizabeth Hospital in Boston, testified: "I snapped, I kind of blacked out. I grabbed her. On the neck."
Remarking that Tuerk had thrown Kathleen's body away "like a bag of trash", the judge said: "I can't imagine a human being's last moments on earth while being strangled by her husband, it's simply difficult to fathom."
On the same day that Kathleen's body was recovered, with "injuries and bruising consistent with strangulation", Tuerk was found unresponsive in a Dedham hotel and taken to a nearby hospital. As reported by PEOPLE, the Commonwealth's sentencing memorandum shows that Tuerk married Reiki master Kathleen in December 2019, and the relationship 'quickly deteriorated".
In February 2020, a restraining order was issued against Tuerk, who was asked to leave the marital home. Allegations of domestic violence were also made against the defendant, including claims that Tuerk allegedly beat and threatened Kathleen.
Reconciliation attempts were made, and on May 14, the couple spent the evening together at home with Kathleen's three children, all of whom gave witness impact statements. As per Law & Crime, Kathleen's now 21-year-old daughter recalled the night of her mother's death, telling the court: 'Five years ago, I woke up in the middle of the night, looked down the stairs, and saw Harry Tuerk.
"I instantly knew something bad had happened. We made eye contact and since then I've been filled with a whole new level of fear I didn't know was quite possible.'
Kathleen's sister, Beth Molanson, also paid tribute to a woman she remembers "as vibrant and full of life". She shared: "She always had a smile, she was calm, she had more patience than anyone I know, and most importantly, she was a mother to her three children, Sophie, Gracie and Sam. Everything she did in her life centred around her three babies."
A specialist in the field of robotic and laparoscopic surgery for urinary obstruction, Tuerk earned some fame in his profession but was ultimately terminated from St. Elizabeth's Medical Centre after coming under investigation for inappropriately billing the Medicaid program, the Boston Herald reports.
In a statement read aloud before the court, Tuerk apologised to Kathleen, as reported by Boston25News, saying: 'I'm sorry, Katie. Please forgive me for having reacted in such a way on May 15, 2020, that it caused the end of your life. I'm thinking about you every day. I wish I could make it all unhappen.'
He also apologised to Kathleen's three children, continuing: 'I've been waiting for five years to be able to reach out to Katie's children. Please accept my condolences and apologies, Sophia, Grace, and Sam, for having taken your mom away from you. I can't even imagine the pain I've caused you.'
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