Woman Charged with Murder for Allegedly Injecting Morphine into Alzheimer’s-Stricken Mother

Lifestyle
Paul Johns
March 4, 2025
10 minutes read

( Image: Starling Funeral Home)

A 41-year-old woman has been charged with murder after allegedly administering a lethal dose of morphine to her mother, who was living with Alzheimer’s disease. Rachel Elaine Waters faces malice murder and felony murder charges in connection with the death of her 74-year-old mother, Marsha Sprayberry Foster, at an assisted living facility in Evans, Georgia, in July 2023.

Columbia County Major Steve Morris confirmed that Waters, who resides in New York, is expected to surrender to Georgia authorities this week. “Waters is cooperating in New York, but we’re waiting for her to turn herself into Georgia officials after spending thousands of dollars trying to track her down,” Morris told The Independent.

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The incident occurred on July 12, 2023, when Waters allegedly administered morphine to her mother while she was a resident at Marshall Pines assisted living facility. Foster, who had been battling Alzheimer’s, passed away shortly after.

The facility’s director reported the death as suspicious to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, prompting an investigation. Morphine, an opioid used to treat severe pain, can be fatal in high doses. It blocks pain signals in the brain and is available in various forms, including tablets, liquids, and injections, the Augusta Press said.

Sprayberry Foster was a telecommunications specialist and lifelong artist ( Image: Starling Funeral Home)

Foster’s obituary described her as a warm and compassionate individual who “died in the comfort of her daughter’s embrace.” A dedicated telecommunications specialist at Fort Gordon’s Department of the Army for 38 years, Foster was also a lifelong artist who cherished nature.

“Even as her mind succumbed to the terrible vanishing of Alzheimer’s, she never hesitated to admire the cuteness of a caterpillar inching across her step or the beauty of a dragonfly perched on the boardwalk at Phinizy Swamp,” the obituary read, according to Burns Smith Law.

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In Georgia, malice murder refers to an unlawful and intentional killing without legal justification, while felony murder applies when a death occurs during the commission of a serious felony.

Waters’ charges suggest prosecutors believe her actions were deliberate and unlawful. As the case unfolds, the community mourns the loss of Foster, remembered for her kindness and love for life, while awaiting further details on the circumstances surrounding her tragic death.