'I helped him out': Grandson loaded his 90-year-old grandfather 'full of f—ing pain meds' and Ambien to 'ease him' to his 'next life' while stealing his house, police say

Inset: Christopher Balter (Brevard County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The Palm Bay, Fla., home where Christopher Balter allegedly killed his grandfather with a deadly drug cocktail (Google Maps).

A former county official in Florida claims he “helped” his 90-year-old grandfather out by killing him with a deadly cocktail of Ambien, morphine and other prescription drugs, according to cops.

Christopher Balter, 35, is currently charged with delivery of a controlled substance and forgery after he allegedly attempted to forge signatures onto a “quitclaim deed” — a legal document used to transfer ownership of real estate — just weeks before Gilbert Balter’s death on Feb. 1, police say.

Christopher Balter’s arrest affidavit outlines how he allegedly discussed and admitted to friends that he killed his grandpa while the nonagenarian was in home hospice care at a residence in Brevard County earlier this year. He allegedly claimed in phone calls that Gilbert Balter “never wanted to live like that” and had asked his grandson to take his life.

“I didn’t kill him. I helped him out,” the younger Balter said in a text message to longtime friend Kristen Rutherford, who ended up reporting him to police.

“By given [sic] him medication that he wasn’t prescribed,” Rutherford replied. Balter fired back, “Yes, and I would have done the same for you if you needed it.” Investigators later learned that Gilbert Balter had not been prescribed the Ambien found in his system, but Chris Balter was prescribed Ambien several times in the past, the affidavit stated.

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On Feb. 3, Rutherford went to the police station to report Gilbert Balter’s death, but when she arrived, she saw that Christopher Balter was already waiting in the parking lot of the station.

“For this reason, she turned around and went home,” according to Balter’s affidavit.

She allegedly then contacted police and told them that Balter was texting and talking openly over the phone about killing his grandfather.

Rutherford handed over the messages from Balter and was interviewed about what he had been allegedly saying. The text messages and conversations are cited in the arrest affidavit, as is a phone call that cops recorded.

“People do that all the time to help people out,” Balter allegedly said during the call, which Rutherford made from the police station while cops listened in.

“That is what hospice is,” he allegedly told her. “They load them full of f—ing pain meds and ease their way out.” To which Rutherford said,  “Yea but you’re not hospice.”

Balter allegedly replied, “We were in hospice care dosing him; that’s what hospice at home is. …  You’re thinking about yourself in this which is very selfish.”

Asked how the alleged killing went down and whether he “injected” his grandpa, Balter said, “I did not inject him. I gave it to him in his mouth,” according to the affidavit.

“He didn’t want to be spitting up and spuing [sic] on himself like he was,” Balter allegedly added, noting how he wanted to “help him to his next life,” per cops.

“So, if that helps you sleep at night, yes,” Balter allegedly said.

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The hospice company hired by Gilbert Balter, Amedisys Hospice, confirmed to police that Christopher Balter was Gilbert’s emergency contact and grandson. Gilbert’s health deteriorated over several days, from Jan. 29 to his death on Feb. 1, while hospice workers visited, according to investigators. Gilbert was allegedly being given Haldol, liquid morphine and Lorazepam in addition to Ambien.

“During these visits, Gilbert Balter was in a ‘coma’ like state and was non-verbal,” the affidavit says. This allegedly confirmed a statement provided by Christopher Balter that his grandfather was in a “vegetative” state before he died, but cops noticed something during the death investigation.

“Chris Balter alleged Gilbert Balter was in this state for four days, but hospice records prove Gilbert Balter was still alert on January 30, 2025 (two days before his death),” the affidavit says.

In fact, according to police, 19 days before Gilbert Balter’s death, he had a conversation with his hospice case manager where they spoke about his desire to “live longer,” contrary to his grandson’s claims that he asked to die.

The night before Gilbert Balter began hospice care, Christopher Balter went to Rutherford and tried to get her to sign his quitclaim deed for his grandfather’s home. When she refused, Christopher Balter forged her signature on the notarized document, police said.

“He is such a user,” Rutherford told a friend in a text after Balter had asked her to sign the deed. “Makes my skin crawl.”

Christopher Balter was working as Indian River County’s director of planning and development before his arrest on Aug. 3. He has since resigned from the position.