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A Stafford County man complained to the state over the way a funeral home handled his father-in-law's cremation
A Stafford County man complained to the state over the way a funeral home handled his father-in-law's cremation
Date published: 2/18/2007
BY JIM HALL William Watson had read stories about the illegal trafficking in bodies and the plundering of body parts, and he didn't want that to happen to his father-in-law. So the Stafford resident told the funeral home he wanted to be present when his father-in-law was cremated. Watson wanted to see everything, from the placement of the remains in the furnace to the grinding of the pieces to the pouring of the ashes into the urn. All of it. Watson said that workers at the funeral home told him that would be fine. They asked only that he sign a release. Watson's father-in-law was to be the last cremation of the day. The staff told Watson to be at the crematory at 4 p.m. The date was April 27, 2006. When Watson arrived, he found that his father-in-law had been placed in a cardboard box. As the operator started to load the box into the furnace, Watson stopped him. "How do I know that my father-in-law is in there?" Watson said. The operator opened the box, and Watson could see the body of his 85-year-old father-in-law, dressed in a hospital gown. Watson was satisfied, and the operator pushed the box into the oven. Then the operator told Watson that the crematory was closing for the day and that he would have to leave. Watson objected, saying that he had been told that he could see the entire cremation. That would be the only way he and his family would be certain that their wishes had been carried out. But the operator insisted and Watson left. He returned the next day and retrieved a box of remains. Within days, Watson complained to the Virginia Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers, the state agency that regulates the funeral industry. In September, Watson received a letter from the state, saying that there was insufficient evidence to find the funeral home in violation of state laws or regulations. For that reason, the business is not named in this story. Still, Watson is dissatisfied. He said his family can never be sure that the remains he received were those of his father-in-law. Watson also said that the crematory operator told him that his father-in-law's artificial knees would be removed from the oven and returned to the manufacturer for reprocessing and possibly resale.
Read more stories about Fredericksburg Date published: 2/18/2007
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