Nursing student knew drugs she gave father-in-law would kill him, Ohio prosecutors say
An Ohio woman has been sentenced after prosecutors said she killed her father-in-law on Christmas Eve.
Brittany Cole, 37, of Zanesville pleaded guilty Feb. 26 to charges of murder and abuse of a corpse and was immediately sentenced to life in prison, according to a news release from the Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office. Brittany’s attorney declined to comment to McClatchy News.
Police received a 911 call Feb. 10 about a dead body found in a shed wrapped in a tarp and a plastic mattress cover, which authorities later identified as David Cole Sr., Brittany Cole’s father-in-law.
Brittany Cole, a nursing student, told investigators she found her father-in-law dead on Christmas morning after giving him “a lethal combination of medications” the night before, prosecutors said.
She told authorities she gave David Cole Sr. Tylenol 3s with codeine “and a significant amount of ZzzQuil,” according to the prosecutor’s office.
When he complained of pain less than two hours after the first dose, Brittany Cole gave him more of both medications, “knowing it would be fatal,” and went to bed, authorities said.
She found him dead at 5 a.m. on Christmas Day, then searched Google for the answer to “when someone dies how long does it take for the body to start smelling?”
Son finds father’s body
Prosecutors said Brittany Cole instructed family members to lie about her father-in-law’s whereabouts, telling them to say he moved to Cincinnati.
David Cole Jr. — Brittany’s husband and Cole Sr.’s son — found his father dead Jan. 8 and made plans with his wife to conceal and move his body, ultimately to the shed where it was found a little over a month later, the prosecutors office said.
Prosecutors did not say who found David Cole Sr.’s body.
The couple continued to receive and spend the man’s $2,3000 monthly Social Security benefits on their household expenses, prosecutors said.
“Brittany Cole’s actions reflect a shocking betrayal of trust,” prosecutor Ron Welch said in the release. “She not only ended her father-in-law’s life but then exploited his death for financial gain, hiding the truth for weeks while manipulating her family.”
The prosecutor’s office said charges are pending against David Cole Jr. Attorney information was not available.
Zanesville is about a 55-mile drive east from Columbus.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 1:37 PM with the headline "Nursing student knew drugs she gave father-in-law would kill him, Ohio prosecutors say."
