A mix-up at the Boyd Funeral Home in Camden, New Jersey, has led to a lawsuit filed by the family of Addison Jenkins, an 81-year-old husband and father who passed away on February 11, 2023.
According to the lawsuit, filed on September 5, the family arranged for the funeral home to host Jenkins’ viewing and cremation. However, when they arrived on February 17 to check on the arrangements, they discovered a different corpse.
“[Family members]… became immediately distressed and angered when they saw another unrecognizable corpse dressed in (Jenkins’) clothes and belongings,” the lawsuit states.
The family’s horror was compounded when an employee showed them texts from the funeral home’s director, insisting that the body in the casket was indeed Jenkins. A makeup artist also attempted to convince the family that the body belonged to their loved one.
However, the family knew something was terribly wrong and demanded action.
The next day, they returned to the funeral home to find Jenkins’ correct body in the casket.
The family alleges that the funeral home’s negligence caused them “significant emotional distress.”
They are seeking a trial by jury and compensatory and punitive damages for “negligent infliction of emotional distress” and “mishandling of human remains.”
“This is a heartbreaking and unacceptable mistake that no family should ever have to endure,” said the family’s attorney. “We will fight for justice and accountability.”
The Boyd Funeral Home has not commented on the lawsuit.
