Unrefrigerated Bodies, Maggots Found At Michigan Funeral Home: State

FLINT, MI — Michigan regulatory officials said Wednesday they have shut down a maggot-infested Flint funeral home that stored unrefrigerated human bodies in a hot garage for as long as five months and smelled of death and decay was shut down by Michigan regulatory authorities, according to a news release. The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs said it has suspended mortuary sciences licenses for both Swanson Funeral Home Inc. and its manager, O’Neil D. Swanson II.

During multiple visits, state inspectors found “deplorable, unsanitary conditions and violations” of Michigan’s health and occupational code and the Prepaid Funeral and Cemetery Sales Act, according to a news release.

Swanson did not immediately respond to Patch’s email requesting comment. Attempts to reach Swanson by phone or leave a message were unsuccessful because the number’s mailbox was full. (For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Flint Patch, click here to find your local Michigan Patch. Also, follow us on Facebook, and if you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Inspectors noted a gruesome scene and the stench of rotting human bodies in their reports, specifically:

• Maggots on the floor of the facility’s garage and garage door;
• Unrefrigerated human bodies stored in the un-air-conditioned garage, some for more than 90 days and up to five months;
• A stench of decomposing bodies;
• An unsanitary preparation room without equipment or supplies necessary for embalming;
• Blood- and fluid-stained casket pillows laying in the hallway.

Additionally, the state said:

• The funeral home was never properly registered as a “producing facility,” nor did it submit a required medical waste management plan under Michigan’s Medical Waste Regulatory Act;
• Repeated violations of standards and laws enforced by the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration affecting the handling, custody, care, or transportation of a dead human body; and
• Failed to register to sell prepaid contracts or maintain a contract with a registrant under the Prepaid Act.

“Michigan residents trust funeral home directors, owners, and their establishments to follow the law especially when dealing with the death of a loved one,” Julia Dale, who heads LARA’s Corporations, Securities & Commercial Licensing Bureau, said in the news release. “We will continue to aggressively hold every funeral home in Michigan to the highest standards of public health and safety when providing final arrangements.”

Swanson could be fined up to $10,000 for each of the violations of the occupational code, and the Michigan Board of Mortuary Science Examiners could permanently revoke his license, according to the release. Additionally, if he’s found to be in violation of the state’s prepaid funeral law, he could go to jail for up to five years and pay a $5,000 fine.

The state said anyone who has used or is in the process of working with Swanson Funeral Home should direct questions to (517) 241-7000.

Photo by unblessed_scalar via Flickr Commons