Woman Impersonated Nurse, Treated Patients At SoCal Hospitals: Police

BURBANK, CA — A 44-year-old woman impersonated a registered nurse at Los Angeles County hospitals, overseeing dozens of patients before officials caught onto her, according to the Burbank Police Department.

Police believe Amanda Leeann Porter, of Virginia, was hired by multiple hospitals, and continued to gain employment as a nurse after being found out. Porter worked at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center and at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Santa Clarita and possibly additional facilities, according to the Burbank Police Department. She has pleaded not guilty to charges of identity theft, false impersonation and grand theft.

Porter was arrested by Burbank police Nov. 7 after she posted bond following a similar offense.

Porter impersonated an out-of-state registered nurse and obtained a nursing position at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in April, according to police. Over the next month, she oversaw about 60 patients.

“Hospital staff soon discovered Porter was impersonating a real registered nurse, who lived out of state,” the police department said in a statement. “By the time Porter was terminated, she received two paychecks for the time she was fraudulently employed.

“Porter does not hold a nursing license and is on federal probation for a fraud violation committed in the State of Virginia. During this investigation, detectives learned that Porter continued to obtain employment with various local hospitals using a variety of false identities. It is believed that Porter may have committed additional similar offenses in the Southern California area during the past year.”

She is currently being held without bail at the Los Angeles County Central Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood. Her next court date is Dec. 2

Anyone with information about the case is urged to contact Burbank Police Detective Arias at (818) 238-3210.