Kathryn Faughey was a 56-year-old New York City psychologist who was murdered by 39-year-old David Tarloff at her Upper East Side office on the night of February 12, 2008.
[1] Tarloff walked past the doorman, rolling a suitcase behind him (as seen on the building's surveillance video), saying that he was there to see Dr. Kent Schinbach, a psychiatrist from the same practice.
[2][3] Tarloff was arrested and arraigned for the murder and ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation[4] which found him to be mentally competent to stand trial.
[4] Tarloff told police that he had planned to rob Schinbach, who he remembered being involved in diagnosing him with schizophrenia in 1991 and arranging for his institutionalization at that time.
[4][5] Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations to protect patient confidentiality were reported to have delayed the initial investigation.
[citation needed] The incident led to public discussion regarding the safety of mental health professionals who see patients in isolated settings.