The mother of the Byron woman who shot and killed her four daughters and herself in February filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Wyoming federal court on Monday.
Rhonda Coplen, Tranyelle Harshman’s mother, has filed a civil lawsuit against Cody-based Sage Psychiatry Services LLC and advanced practice registered nurse Krista Blough, alleging that Blough sent Harshman home with ketamine.
Harshman, 32, shot her four young daughters, called 911, and then committed suicide in her home in residential Byron on February 10.
Brailey Blackmer, nine, Brooke Harshman, almost three, and Jordan Harshman, two, died at home.
Olivia Blackmer, 7, and Harshman were both hospitalized and survived for several days following the incident, but both died.
Harshman’s autopsy toxicology revealed the presence of ketamine as well as clonazepam, an anti-anxiety drug.
Her husband told Cowboy State Daily that she was suffering from depression, post-partum depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of a traumatic incident caused by someone outside their family.
The five-person fatality shook Wyoming, with members of several communities holding prayer vigils for Olivia in her final six days.
The Claims
Coplen’s lawsuit complaint, filed by Sean Olson and Allison Pritchard of Olsen Personal Injury Lawyers, links the tragedy to Harshman’s psychiatry clinic and to Blough.
Blough was aware of Harshman’s PTSD and postpartum depression and gave her ketamine as psychiatric treatment, according to the complaint.
“Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic with known risks of hallucinations, psychosis, and detachment from reality, especially in unsupervised or outpatient settings,” according to the letter.
It continues: “The applicable standard of care requires that ketamine be administered only in medically controlled settings with appropriate monitoring to mitigate risks of dissociation, psychosis, self-harm and harm to others.”
According to the complaint, Blough “prescribed and permitted or directed Ms. Harshman to self-administer ketamine at home without medical supervision or safeguards.”
Harshman ingested ketamine at home on February 10, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, Harshman shot her four children and herself while in a drug-induced altered or dissociative state.
The complaint describes Blough’s prescribing and management of the drug prescription as “below the applicable standard of care,” negligent, and the cause of all five deaths.
According to the document, Blough negligently assessed Harshman’s suitability for ketamine, allowed unsupervised at-home use of the drug, failed to monitor Harshman for adverse psychological reactions, failed to warn Harshman of “extreme risks of home use,” and acted outside accepted safety protocols.
Coplen and the deceased’s statutory beneficiaries have suffered “devastating economic and non-economic harm,” according to the complaint.
The Ask
The filing asserts:
• a negligence cause of action against Blough,
• a negligence cause of action against Sage Psychiatry Services LLC,
• a wrongful death cause of action against both,
• and a negligence/lack of informed consent cause of action against both.
Coplen is asking for general, special and punitive damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees and any other relief the court deems proper.
She’s also asking for a jury trial.
Blough and Sage Psychiatry did not immediately return voicemail requests for comment.
