Former Idaho registered nurse charged with felony fentanyl possession in third DUI arrest
A former registered nurse who appears last to have worked at a skilled nursing home in Boise stands accused of felony possession of fentanyl.
Police found Gregory Applegate Jr., 28, of Meridian, falling asleep behind the wheel of his crashed, but still running, Jeep SUV after hitting a pole at a Starbucks drive-through in Eagle in December, according to court records. He was arrested that afternoon on suspicion of driving under the influence, his third time in four years.
Applegate is charged with felony possession of a controlled substance, misdemeanor drug paraphernalia use or intent to use, and his third misdemeanor DUI. In May, he pleaded not guilty to each of the three charges and awaits a trial next month.
Applegate admitted to police smoking fentanyl — a potent opioid 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine — right before emergency responders arrived, according to a probable cause report. During a search of Applegate’s SUV, Ada County Sheriff’s deputy Damian Rodriguez found “multiple prescription pills,” a burnt piece of aluminum foil, a lighter and several straws with burned ends, according to Rodriguez’s narrative.
“The lighter/foil/straws were consistent with paraphernalia for smoking heroin/fentanyl,” Rodriguez wrote. Rodriguez also reported that Applegate exhibited droopy eyelids, extremely small pinpoint pupils and slurred speech, was extremely pale and could barely stay awake before he was taken to the Ada County Jail on Christmas Eve last year.
Erik O’Daniel, Applegate’s attorney listed in court filings, did not return a phone message or email from the Idaho Statesman. Applegate also did not respond to a voicemail left by the Statesman on his cellphone Tuesday.
Applegate remains on criminal probation through mid-January next year after two prior DUI arrests, in 2017 and 2019, and a separate misdemeanor theft conviction earlier this year. His first DUI charge was dismissed as part of a plea deal in which he agreed to pay restitution, court records showed.
Applegate pleaded guilty to his second DUI charge and received a year of unsupervised probation, a deferred six-month jail sentence, a suspended driver’s license and 40 hours of public service. For his theft conviction, he received another year of probation, served four days of a three-month deferred jail sentence and paid a $300 fine, court records showed.
If found guilty, a judge could rule Applegate’s most recent charges constitute violations of his probation. His trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 19.
On LinkedIn, Applegate lists his last date of employment with Shaw Mountain of Cascadia nursing home as September 2020 but hasn’t updated his work history since; on Facebook, he still lists Cascadia as his employer. His registered nursing license in Idaho appears to have expired in February, according to a national nursing license verification system.
Cascadia Healthcare operates long-term skilled nursing facilities in six Western U.S. states. With 22 locations, Idaho is the company’s largest operation. Eight of those facilities are in the Treasure Valley, including the Boise location where Applegate said he worked.
Steve LaForte, attorney for Cascadia Healthcare, told the Statesman by email that Applegate does not currently work for the company. But it remains unclear when he left the nursing home in Boise.
“While our policy remains that we don’t make public comments on internal employee matters, I can confirm with certainty that Mr. Applegate does not work for or at Shaw Mountain of Cascadia,” LaForte wrote.
LaForte, however, declined to say whether Applegate is a former employee, if the company knew his registered nurse license had expired, or whether it was aware of his most recent criminal charges.
Lapsed license raises questions
Applegate potentially could face even more legal issues if he was working as a registered nurse without a current license.
Under Idaho law, nurses in the state may only practice with an active license. Maintaining a license requires submitting a renewal application and fee, and proof of completing continued education requirements within a license’s two-year timetable.
“It is the responsibility of the nurse to keep the license current,” Bob McLaughlin, a spokesperson for Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses, told the Statesman by email.
Any other license holder who knowingly aids in a nurse’s unlicensed practice could, like the individual, face discipline from the Idaho Board of Nursing, he added.
The penalties for an unlicensed nurse can range from license revocation to an injunction preventing further practice, per Idaho law. They may also, “based upon the circumstances at issue and the egregiousness of the conduct,” McLaughlin said, include up to six months in prison and as much as a $300 fine.
It is unclear whether Applegate applied for renewal of his registered nurse license. Idaho law bars such information from public disclosure.
The state’s Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses does not monitor the current employment status or location of nurses in Idaho, McLaughlin said.
“This is not a feasible task,” he said. “However, when a complaint is filed against a licensee, the board may seek information related to the licensee’s employment.”
Idaho law also restricts potential complaints filed with the state’s Board of Nursing from public release, as well as whether the board is actively investigating a non-compliant license holder, McLaughlin said.
Last year, the Idaho Board of Nursing revoked four registered nurse licenses and suspended under emergency a fifth, according to online discipline data. So far in 2022, the board has revoked the licenses of three registered nurses in the state.
This story was originally published September 15, 2022 at 12:48 PM.
