Apparently the practice of stuffing bodies with newspaper is okay in Georgia. I thought that they would have at least had to disclose to the family that the organs were missing....damn!


http://www.cbsnews.com/ne...ome-probe/


The Georgia Secretary of State has concluded its investigation into the funeral home that handled the remains of Kendrick Johnson, a Georgia teen found dead in Jan. 2012 inside a rolled-up wrestling mat in his high school gym, according to a spokesperson for Secretary of State Brian Kemp.

Jared Thomas told CBS News’ Crimesider no criminal charges have been filed against the Harrington Funeral Home in Valdosta, Ga. because the investigation found “they didn’t violate any rules.”

Thomas said a letter of concern was issued to the funeral home on behalf of the Georgia Funeral Board, which is administered by the Georgia Secretary of State, asking them to “update their practices.”

Authorities initially called Johnson's death a freak accident, saying he fell head-first into an upright gym mat and became trapped. The case was closed, but Johnson's family insisted he was killed.

When a judge agreed to exhume Johnson's body last summer, a private pathologist not only determined he died of blunt force trauma to the neck, but also that his organs were missing and his body had been stuffed with newspaper.

While it remains unclear what happened to Johnson’s organs, the Harrington Funeral Home has admitted to using newspaper to stuff Johnson’s body, saying it is in conformity with burial protocol.

Crimesider spoke to four experts in November 2012 in regards to the case which all said it is not common for newspaper to be used during embalming.

“It’s not something very pleasant to talk about but it’s not illegal,” Thomas said Friday of the funeral home’s embalming technique.

Thomas went on to say that the investigation done by the Georgia Secretary of State could not determine what happened to Johnson’s organs. He said they were unable to determine whether the funeral home received the body with the organs in place.

Roy Copeland, the attorney for the funeral home, released a written statement to Crimesider in November saying that when the funeral home received Johnson’s body, the organs had already been removed.

He said Antonio Harrington was told by a death investigator with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which conducted the autopsy, that Johnson’s viscera, or internal organs, were disposed of during the autopsy due to decomposition. He also justified the funeral home’s use of newspaper to stuff Johnson’s body, saying it is in conformity with burial protocol.

Sherry Lang, spokesperson for the GBI, told Crimesider in November that in "every single autopsy [conducted at the GBI], the internal organs are returned to the body cavity."

The body was transported from the GBI to the funeral home by a third-party transport company, which has not responded to multiple requests for an interview.

Ben Crump, an attorney representing the Johnson family, told Crimesider Friday that while the family is disappointed that the funeral home cannot be held criminally responsible for stuffing their son’s body with newspaper, it is “far less important than the critical issue of them discarding or destroying his organs.”

Crump said the fact that the organs are missing is “critical” because “it prevents the family from being able to retest and reexamine his organs which could provide valuable and relevant information as to what happened to him.”

“The family will be proactive in getting to the truth of what happened to their son,” Crump said. “This news will certainly be followed with action.”

The Georgia Secretary of State was not the only entity reexamining Johnson’s case. Michael Moore, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announced in November that he was reopening the case.

Crimesider contacted the office of Michael Moore on Friday for a comment on the status of the investigation but it was not immediately returned.
© 2014 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Nobody is gonna embalm me.

Cremation all the way! I don't wanna be buried either. Cast me to the 4winds in a pretty place.

[Edited 1/19/14 11:41am]

how can it be "cleared" when they can't say what happened to his internal organs? how is taking them out before burial okay? isn't that like, defacing a corpose or soemthing? did they sell them or what?

XxAxX said:

how can it be "cleared" when they can't say what happened to his internal organs? how is taking them out before burial okay? isn't that like, defacing a corpose or soemthing? did they sell them or what?

That's what I wanna know...who took the organs and if they were sold? Was it the ME or the transportation company or the funeral home. Might even have been the killer...and nobody bothered to tell the family.

Crazy.

then, in short, the rape and robbery of the dead is a matter of course

as far as cremation, i've seen where companies have sold bodies into bondage

(scientific studies, whuteva) and given concrete dust and the like to the

bereaved families, thereby makin money from both ends...

maybe i should look into funeral directin

The mystery (or question) lies with the autopsy. An autopsy was performed and the internal organs were supposedly disposed of due to decomposition. That's extremely unusual (as mentioned in the article). They are suppoed to return the organs to the body cavity.

*

I just went through all this a little over a year ago with the coroner's office / medical investigators / autopsy etc. when my mother died. I spoke with the medical examiner several times over the period of a month or so because it took that long to do all the tests they wanted to run. They were unable to determine anything from a visual autopsy so several other tests needed to be done. It was obvious to me that the medical examiner here in my county was extremely thorough, professional & all parts were returned to the body even though there was decomposition involved.

*

So, someone needs to get to the bottom of WHY in this case, the internal organs were not returned to the body cavity. It doesn't make sense especially when that's the norm.

KingBAD said:

then, in short, the rape and robbery of the dead is a matter of course

as far as cremation, i've seen where companies have sold bodies into bondage

(scientific studies, whuteva) and given concrete dust and the like to the

bereaved families, thereby makin money from both ends...

maybe i should look into funeral directin

There was a case a few years back in Georgia where the son was supposed to be managing a cemetery, which was the family business. They found out the SOB was charging for burial plots and throwing the caskets with remains in the woods behind the cemetery...

Tempest said:

The mystery (or question) lies with the autopsy. An autopsy was performed and the internal organs were supposedly disposed of due to decomposition. That's extremely unusual (as mentioned in the article). They are suppoed to return the organs to the body cavity.

*

I just went through all this a little over a year ago with the coroner's office / medical investigators / autopsy etc. when my mother died. I spoke with the medical examiner several times over the period of a month or so because it took that long to do all the tests they wanted to run. They were unable to determine anything from a visual autopsy so several other tests needed to be done. It was obvious to me that the medical examiner here in my county was extremely thorough, professional & all parts were returned to the body even though there was decomposition involved.

*

So, someone needs to get to the bottom of WHY in this case, the internal organs were not returned to the body cavity. It doesn't make sense especially when that's the norm.

Good lord, I'm glad your case was handled with care. It's difficult enough even under normal circumstances.

babynoz said:

Tempest said:

The mystery (or question) lies with the autopsy. An autopsy was performed and the internal organs were supposedly disposed of due to decomposition. That's extremely unusual (as mentioned in the article). They are suppoed to return the organs to the body cavity.

*

I just went through all this a little over a year ago with the coroner's office / medical investigators / autopsy etc. when my mother died. I spoke with the medical examiner several times over the period of a month or so because it took that long to do all the tests they wanted to run. They were unable to determine anything from a visual autopsy so several other tests needed to be done. It was obvious to me that the medical examiner here in my county was extremely thorough, professional & all parts were returned to the body even though there was decomposition involved.

*

So, someone needs to get to the bottom of WHY in this case, the internal organs were not returned to the body cavity. It doesn't make sense especially when that's the norm.

Good lord, I'm glad your case was handled with care. It's difficult enough even under normal circumstances.

Yes, me too. The coroner's office was terrific. If you knew all the circumstances surrounding her death (& the aftermath), you'd be floored. I'm still trying to recover (mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually) a year and a half later from all the evil that transpired. It's been a nightmare. I should write a book about my life but I'm not sure how many people would actually believe what I've endured. The coroner's office was the highlight of this situation because the medical examiner was not only extremely professional but very kind too. Kindness & empathy aren't things I'm accustomed to receiving given the narcissism & sociopathy in my family so it was a welcome oasis in the midst of all the evil drama.

Tempest said:

babynoz said:

Good lord, I'm glad your case was handled with care. It's difficult enough even under normal circumstances.

Yes, me too. The coroner's office was terrific. If you knew all the circumstances surrounding her death (& the aftermath), you'd be floored. I'm still trying to recover (mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually) a year and a half later from all the evil that transpired. It's been a nightmare. I should write a book about my life but I'm not sure how many people would actually believe what I've endured. The coroner's office was the highlight of this situation because the medical examiner was not only extremely professional but very kind too. Kindness & empathy aren't things I'm accustomed to receiving given the narcissism & sociopathy in my family so it was a welcome oasis in the midst of all the evil drama.

I hope there are better days ahead for you as well as the Johnson family.

babynoz said:

Tempest said:

Yes, me too. The coroner's office was terrific. If you knew all the circumstances surrounding her death (& the aftermath), you'd be floored. I'm still trying to recover (mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually) a year and a half later from all the evil that transpired. It's been a nightmare. I should write a book about my life but I'm not sure how many people would actually believe what I've endured. The coroner's office was the highlight of this situation because the medical examiner was not only extremely professional but very kind too. Kindness & empathy aren't things I'm accustomed to receiving given the narcissism & sociopathy in my family so it was a welcome oasis in the midst of all the evil drama.

I hope there are better days ahead for you as well as the Johnson family.

Thank you.

By the time the funeral home got the body, the organs would be useless to sell at least for transplanting. I guess you could use them to make dog food or something.

But why they arent investigating where and when the organs disappeared is bizarre.

The only thing I can think of is research. Do they accept decomposed organs for research?

I gotta think if it was legit they would have to document the disposal of organs....can't just toss 'em out all willy-nilly.

babynoz said:

The only thing I can think of is research. Do they accept decomposed organs for research?

I gotta think if it was legit they would have to document the disposal of organs....can't just toss 'em out all willy-nilly.

i'm reminded of that dude who was taking bodies in and just dropping them off out back in the woods behind the broken crematorium..... i think that, because of the taboo nature of death, most people don't even question what goes on behind those closed doors.

KingBAD said:

then, in short, the rape and robbery of the dead is a matter of course

as far as cremation, i've seen where companies have sold bodies into bondage

(scientific studies, whuteva) and given concrete dust and the like to the

bereaved families, thereby makin money from both ends...

maybe i should look into funeral directin

watch that movie 'burke & hare' about the edinburgh ghouls who (not content with grave robbing) turned to living folks for obtaining their 'medical corpses' for sale....

Okay, I just read a little snippet about a Biomedical facility being closed down by the FDA not too many years ago because they were havesting body parts for research, but I don't know enough details to answer the question I'm looking for. I'm assuming the funeral home in this case got let off, even though the idea of stuffing someone's loved one with newspaper is distasteful, because they are the last organization in line so too much time would have passed for them to have done anything sinister like havesting, they were just doing something lazy and cheap (not technically illegal) to cover their own azz keeping the "assembly line" rolling. That sounds so terrible.

Georgia is a funny place.

Last time I was in Savannah

I saw a car with no license plate

driving down the road

with a sign in the back window saying

they were waiting for the license

to come in the mail.

"Roy Copeland, the attorney for the funeral home, released a written statement to Crimesider in November saying that when the funeral home received Johnson’s body, the organs had already been removed."

If this is true, then obviously the medical examiner's office removed them, which I don't find unusual, because since the boy was found in a high school, the medical examiner's office was responsible for identifying the cause of death. Being that he was from Bumblefuck, Ga, I'm not surprised that the ME office disposed of them. ME offices are notorious for cutting corners and generlly fucking up.

thedoorkeeper said:

Georgia is a funny place.

Last time I was in Savannah

I saw a car with no license plate

driving down the road

with a sign in the back window saying

they were waiting for the license

to come in the mail.

Shyra said:

"Roy Copeland, the attorney for the funeral home, released a written statement to Crimesider in November saying that when the funeral home received Johnson’s body, the organs had already been removed."

If this is true, then obviously the medical examiner's office removed them, which I don't find unusual, because since the boy was found in a high school, the medical examiner's office was responsible for identifying the cause of death. Being that he was from Bumblefuck, Ga, I'm not surprised that the ME office disposed of them. ME offices are notorious for cutting corners and generlly fucking up.

That must be near Bip-bap, Ga.

The ME admitted thuat the removed them in the course of the autopsy but insisted that they replaced them before releasing the body. So much lying going on down there.

babynoz said:

Shyra said:

"Roy Copeland, the attorney for the funeral home, released a written statement to Crimesider in November saying that when the funeral home received Johnson’s body, the organs had already been removed."

If this is true, then obviously the medical examiner's office removed them, which I don't find unusual, because since the boy was found in a high school, the medical examiner's office was responsible for identifying the cause of death. Being that he was from Bumblefuck, Ga, I'm not surprised that the ME office disposed of them. ME offices are notorious for cutting corners and generlly fucking up.

That must be near Bip-bap, Ga.

The ME admitted thuat the removed them in the course of the autopsy but insisted that they replaced them before releasing the body. So much lying going on down there.

I've forgotten where it was, but one funeral home was dumping the bodies in a vacant lot behind the funeral home. When the funeral home was finally investigated they found about 50 bodies in various stages of decomposition scattered on the property.

When my mom died and my brother and I had her body cremated, the man handling the process told us that some people, many people of Chinese decent, sit and wait for the body to be cremated. Something about someone having to be with the body at all times before burial to make sure the body/remains aren't desecrated in some way.

[Edited 1/23/14 11:50am]

here's somethin to think about;

Abdullah Bee'Zo Azeem Taharraha's photo.

KingBAD said:

here's somethin to think about;

Abdullah Bee'Zo Azeem Taharraha's photo.

A young boy peered into the dissection room at New York Hospital in post-colonial Manhattan only to see medical student John Hicks, Jr. pick up a corpse's arm and wave it at him. Hicks then shouted, "This is your mother's hand. I just dug it up. Watch it or I'll smack you with it!" The frightened boy ran into the April night believing every word the student had said because his mother had died a few days before.

The father, upon hearing the story, gathered some friends and headed toward the local cemetery and his wife's burial plot. They found the grave open and empty. The hole hadn't even been refilled and the coffin had been pried apart. Word soon spread through lower Manhattan and hundreds were storming the hospital.

It was the beginning of America's first riot –The Doctors' Mob Riot of 1788.

The perpetrators of the grave robbing were a group known as "resurrectionists" and their purpose was to get cadavers for medical instruction. Medical students and anatomy teachers of that time were frequently involved in grave robbing for this purpose. Resurrectionists preferred to rob the graves of the poor and homeless but had no problem with desecrating any unguarded plot if demand was great enough. The problem was so great in New York that wealthy families would pay a shotgun-wielding watchman to stand guard over a new burial for two weeks, after which time the body would become useless for dissection.

When the mob reached the hospital they circled the large building and blocked the exits. The torch carrying crowd cried to lynch the doctors inside and might have except that all but one had escaped out the rear windows. Only Dr. Wright Post and three students remained inside to protect anatomical specimens. But they couldn't defy the rioters and everything from the rare specimens to surgical instruments were destroyed. Dr. Wright and his three students had been taken to the city jail by the sheriff in order to protect them.

The mob's anger continued to build through the night. They were looking for vengeance and doctors as they moved from street to street. The crowd searched for John Hicks at the home of a prominent physician and would have found him had they looked in the attic.

In the morning Governor George Clinton called out the militia and many doctors scurried to leave town. But the mob increased in size as the day progressed and they eventually headed towards Columbia College. They attacked the college and destroyed yet more specimens and medical tools. Future Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton tried valiantly to quiet them while future Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Jay was knocked unconscious by a thrown rock. By evening the rioters had descended on the Manhattan jail and would not disperse. Baron Friedrich von Stueben, a hero of the American Revolution, was leading the militia and refused to use force -- that was until he was hit in the head by a brick. The order to shoot at the rioters was given.

The militia fired. Eight were killed and many more were seriously wounded. The doctors treated the wounded, and the rioters disbanded in the morning.

Weeks later the New York legislature passed a law allowing for the dissection of hanged criminals but the grave robbing continued as bodies started to arrive from Long Island. The resurrectionists and grave robbers didn't stop providing cadavers until the middle of the 19th century, thus making the riot completely in vain.

Today a clandestine market still exists for cadavers and body parts in America. US law prohibits corpses from being traded and sold. Still, by using legal loopholes some corpses can generate above $10,000 per body.

I don't doubt this, but where do they get the bodies? I guess they would be from persons who have no relatives or no one came forward to claim the body. Now days a lot of people leave their bodies to medical schools. My grandfather did that. After the students are done dissecting, the body is cremated and the ashes given to the family. Therein lies the truth. Are the ashes given to the family really those of the loved one or a mix of all the cadavers they cremated.