Georgia funeral home replaced teen’s organs with newspaper, and that’s OK: board Kendrick Johnson was examined and buried after Lowndes High School students found the 17-year-olds body in a rolled up gym mat. Family members were angry when the boys body was exhumed for a second autopsy and examiners made the surprising discovery. Read more: nydailynews/news/national/ga-funeral-home-replaced-teen-organs-newspaper-board-article-1.1584635#ixzz2vi8fvC1r A Georgia funeral home didn’t break the law when it used newspaper to stuff the body of a teen found dead in a rolled up wrestling mat, state officials said. The family of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson complained after the high school student’s corpse was exhumed in June 2013 and investigators discovered newsprint in place of several vital organs. The alarming embalming procedure wasn’t the “best practice,” but it’s not illegal, the Georgia Board of Funeral Service found. Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson, shown in December 2013, suspect someone killed their son, Kendrick Johnson, even though local authorities believe the teen died in a freak accident. Russ Bynum/AP Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson, shown in December 2013, suspect someone killed their son, Kendrick Johnson, even though local authorities believe the teen died in a freak accident. Students at Lowdnes High School discovered Johnson’s lifeless body in a rolled up mat in January 2012. Relatives of the student athlete remain convinced he was the victim of foul play, despite the conclusion of local law enforcement authorities that Johnson must have crawled into the mat to retrieve a shoe and got stuck. RELATED: FEDS OPEN PROBE INTO DEATH OF GA. TEEN FOUND IN ROLLED-UP MAT Photos from the scene of the the death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson. Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNN Photos from the scene of the the death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson. An examiner for the Georgia Bureau of Investigation found the teen was suffocated while he was trapped upside down. Johnson’s skeptical family wants the criminal investigation to continue, winning a court order in June to have the body exhumed for a second autopsy. The newspaper was discovered during that examination. Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found dead in a rolled up gym mat by his Georgia classmates. @tomjones161 via twitter Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found dead in a rolled up gym mat by his Georgia classmates. The state funeral board released a report to the family on Thursday, clearing the Harrington Funeral Home of wrongdoing but added there are materials “more acceptable than newspaper,” the Valdosta Daily Times reported. It’s still not clear what happened to the missing organs. The Georgia Bureau of Investigations has said the organs were returned to the body following the first autopsy. The funeral home claimed they were missing when the body arrived. RELATED: KENDRICK JOHNSON CASE: VIDEO EXPERT FINDS SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE ‘HIGHLY SUSPICIOUS’ Security footage shows a Georgia teen shortly before he was found dead in a rolled up gym mat. CNN Security footage shows a Georgia teen shortly before he was found dead in a rolled up gym mat. The home used the newspaper to prepare the teen’s body for public viewing before burial. Shredded paper, cotton and sawdust are all commonly used throughout the industry, the home’s director, Antonio Harrington told the Georgia newspaper. “Personally, I have no ill will towards the family,” Harrington told the Valdosta Daily Times. “I pray for them. We’ve done nothing wrong. It was just a hurtful thing. It hurt my family and we are glad our name has been cleared.” Johnson’s death is still under investigation. Local authorities have concluded the teen was the victim of a freak accident, but Georgia-based federal prosecutors announced in October they would launch their own investigation. With News Wire Services dmmurphy@nydailynews Follow on Twitter @DoyleMurphy Read more: nydailynews/news/national/ga-funeral-home-replaced-teen-organs-newspaper-board-article-1.1584635#ixzz2vi9WUZHN LIKE IF YOU THINK GROSS! COMMENT IF YOU THINK NOT GROSS!
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 01:22:46 +0000
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