Name of Victim: Frances Souther
Age of Victim: 87
Sex of Victim: Female
State: GA
Did the victim survive? No
Date of Death: 06/20/2017
Contact Name: Marsha Joiner
Relationship to Victim: Daughter
Was the victim a military Veteran? No
Was the victim considered special needs, or did they have any kind of disability? No
Was the victim admitted to the hospital? No
Has this incident been reported to any agency such as VAERS, HHS, JACHO, CMS, Medical Board or others? CMS, KEPRO, CAHPS, Hospice Medical Director
If other, please specify: Hospice Respite Facility
Would you be interested in participating in podcasts or other media? Yes
Betrayed at the End: When Hospice Becomes a Death Sentence
Marsha Joiner never imagined that helping her elderly mother would lead her into a nightmare that still echoes through her life. What she encountered was not compassionate end-of-life care, but a quiet, devastating unraveling that raises haunting questions about what happens behind closed doors in hospice settings and how easily vulnerable lives can be extinguished under the language of “comfort” and “care.”
Marsha’s mother, Frances Souther, was 87 years old. She was not terminally ill, not in a hospital, and not dying when hospice entered the picture. Like so many families, Marsha trusted the system. Hospice was presented as a support service, something gentle, humane, and focused on dignity. Marsha’s father was a Pastor and served as a Chaplin at the very facility that ended Frances’s life. Instead, Marsha witnessed a rapid and shocking decline that defied everything she knew about her mother’s condition.
Once hospice care began, basic safeguards seemed to disappear. Medications were introduced that Frances had never needed before. Sedation increased. Communication narrowed. Questions were brushed aside. Marsha, a devoted daughter and vigilant advocate, sensed something was terribly wrong. Her concerns were minimized. Her objections were overridden. The pace of her mother’s deterioration felt unnatural, accelerated, intentional, and irreversible.
What unfolded was not a peaceful passing. It was a systematic shutting down of a life. Hydration and nutrition were withdrawn. Powerful drugs were administered without clear explanation or informed consent. Frances was rendered unable to speak for herself, advocate for herself, or even signal distress. Marsha watched helplessly as the woman who had raised her was slowly erased not by disease, but by decisions made by others.
Frances died on June 20, 2017, in a hospice respite facility. The official explanations did not match what Marsha witnessed. There was no meaningful accountability. No transparent review. No acknowledgment of wrongdoing. Instead, there was silence and a subtle suggestion that this was simply “how hospice works.”
But Marsha refused to accept that answer.
Driven by grief, love, and a fierce determination to protect other families, Marsha began to investigate. She filed complaints. She reported the case to oversight bodies. She documented everything. And ultimately, she wrote a book, Betrayed by Hospice and Healthcare, to expose what she believes is a hidden, systemic form of euthanasia taking place under the cover of end-of-life care. Her book, available on Amazon, is both a personal testimony and a warning: hospice, when corrupted by protocol, profit, or unchecked authority, can become a place where lives are shortened rather than supported.
Marsha’s story is not about COVID. It is about something broader and more enduring. It is about institutional betrayal. It is about how families are disempowered, how consent is blurred or ignored, and how the most vulnerable among us our elderly, our disabled, our voiceless can be quietly sacrificed without public scrutiny.
Her experience exposes patterns that are deeply troubling: rapid sedation, withdrawal of food and water, dismissal of family objections, and the use of language that reframes death as “comfort.” These are not isolated incidents. They are warning signs. And without courageous voices like Marsha’s, they remain hidden.
That is why Betrayal Project USA exists.
We are providing a platform for stories like Marsha’s stories that fall outside the approved narratives, stories that challenge trusted systems, stories that demand accountability. Our organization is led by victims, widows, widowers, survivors, and family members who know this pain firsthand. We are documenting these injustices, preserving the truth, and building a community that refuses to look away.
If you or someone you love has experienced harm, neglect, coercion, or suspicious death in hospice or healthcare you are not alone. Your story matters. And it may be the key to stopping these practices from continuing in the shadows.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by hospice care or other forms of medical or institutional betrayal, we invite you to document your story at betrayalprojectusa.org. Together, we are demanding truth, accountability, and reforms so that no more families have to endure what Marsha and her mother did.
