Current:Home > ScamsRotting bodies and fake ashes spur Colorado lawmakers to pass funeral home regulations-LoTradeCoin
Rotting bodies and fake ashes spur Colorado lawmakers to pass funeral home regulations
View Date:2024-12-24 00:04:02
DENVER (AP) — Colorado lawmakers passed a sweeping bill Monday to overhaul the state’s lax oversight over funeral homes after a series of horrific incidents, including sold body parts, fake ashes and the discovery of 190 decaying bodies.
The cases have devastated hundreds of already grieving families and shed a glaring spotlight on the state’s funeral home regulations, some of the weakest in the nation.
The bill will go to Democratic Gov. Jared Polis’ desk for a signature after final changes in the state Senate are considered by the House. If signed, regulators would have far greater enforcement power over funeral homes, and would be required to routinely inspect facilities including after one shutters.
It joins a second bill that passed both chambers last week which, if signed, would require funeral home directors and other industry roles to pass a background check, get a degree in mortuary science, and pass a national examination and an apprenticeship.
The legislations’ passage arrives after the 190 decomposing bodies were found at a funeral homes’ bug-infested facility about two hours south of Denver. Many families were left wondering whether the cremated remains they received were actually their child’s or parent’s. Some have learned they weren’t.
Instead, some bodies were languishing in a building, some for four years. The owners have been arrested and face hundreds of charges, including abuse of a corpse.
At another Colorado funeral home in February, a body was left in the back of a hearse for over a year.
Colorado’s funeral home regulations are some of the weakest in the nation. Funeral home directors don’t have to graduate high school and regulators weren’t required to do routine inspections, as is the case in many other states. These bills would be a dramatic update, putting Colorado on par with the rest of the country.
___
Bedayn is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
veryGood! (728)
Related
- 2 weeks after Peanut the Squirrel's euthanasia, owner is seeking answers, justice
- Pregnant Brittany Mahomes Shares Why She’s “Always Proud” of Patrick Mahomes
- Photos and videos capture 'biblical devastation' in Asheville, North Carolina: See Helene's aftermath
- Harris, Trump shift plans after Hurricane Helene’s destruction
- Olivia Culpo Celebrates Christian McCaffrey's NFL Comeback Alongside Mother-in-Law
- ‘Sing Sing’ actor exonerated of murder after nearly 24 years in prison
- West Virginia lawmakers delay taking up income tax cut and approve brain research funds
- Kylie Jenner's Secret Use for Nipple Cream Is the Ultimate Mom Hack
- Why the US celebrates Veterans Day and how the holiday has changed over time
- Pregnant Brittany Mahomes Shares Why She’s “Always Proud” of Patrick Mahomes
Ranking
- 10 Trendy Bags To Bring to All of Your Holiday Plans
- Harris, Trump shift plans after Hurricane Helene’s destruction
- Native Americans in Montana ask court for more in-person voting sites
- Ariana Grande Reveals Every Cosmetic Procedure She's Had Done
- Mega Millions winning numbers for November 12 drawing: Jackpot rises to $361 million
- Plans to build green spaces aimed at tackling heat, flooding and blight
- Identical Twin Influencers Defend Decision to Share Underwear and One Bra
- Texas can no longer investigate alleged cases of vote harvesting, federal judge says
Recommendation
-
The Daily Money: Inflation is still a thing
-
As communities grapple with needle waste, advocates say limiting syringe programs is not the answer
-
Hall of Fame center Dikembe Mutombo dies of brain cancer at 58
-
Trial on new Georgia election certification rules set to begin
-
Man Found Dead in Tanning Bed at Planet Fitness Gym After 3 Days
-
Rebel Wilson and Ramona Agruma marry in Italy
-
MLB Legend Pete Rose Dead at 83
-
Wisconsin prisons agree to help hearing-impaired inmates under settlement