Serial killer nurse Charles Cullen, sits alone in court during his sentencing in Somerville, N.J., Thursday, March 2, 2006. The nurse who admitted to killing as many as 40 patients was ordered imprisoned for the rest of his life Thursday after relatives of his victims confronted him at a hearing, calling him the

Somerville, N.J. ? A nurse who killed at least 29 patients was sent to prison for the rest of his life Thursday after his victims’ loved ones angrily branded him “vermin,” “garbage” and a “monster” who ruined lives and shattered their faith in the medical profession.

Charles Cullen – one of the most prolific killers the U.S. health care industry has ever seen – escaped the death penalty after making a deal with prosecutors to tell them which patients he killed with hard-to-detect drug injections.

He received 11 consecutive life terms at a tense and sometimes turbulent hearing in which he came face-to-face with his victims’ families for the first time. Wearing a bulletproof vest under his sweater, Cullen sat quietly as relatives wept and yelled at him from a lectern about 15 feet from where he sat.

“You betrayed the ancient foundations of the healing professions,” Superior Court Judge Paul Armstrong said as Cullen stood motionless, his eyes closed.

Cullen, 46, pleaded guilty to murdering 22 people in New Jersey and trying to kill three others. He will be sentenced later for seven murders and three attempted murders in Pennsylvania. Cullen has claimed to have killed up to 40 people during a career that spanned 16 years and 10 nursing homes and hospitals.

Melissa Hardgrove reacts as she talks about her father, Christopher Hardgrove (in photo at right) during sentencing for serial killer nurse Charles Cullen in Somerville, N.J., Thursday, March 2, 2006. Cullen was sentenced to 11 consecutive life terms in prison after a hearing during which relatives of his victims called him the

He was fired from five nursing jobs and resigned from two others amid questions about his practices. But he always managed to find another job, in part because hospitals did not share their suspicions for fear of being sued.

New Jersey lawmakers have since passed legislation protecting nursing homes and hospitals from legal action when reporting disciplinary actions taken against employees.

Cullen has admitted to using lethal doses of medications – usually the heart medication digoxin – to kill patients. He told authorities when he was arrested in 2003 that he killed “very sick” patients.