Two families have filed suit against Hutchison Funeral Home in Detroit for a mix-up that resulted in a premature cremation and an alleged cover-up.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Sept. 30, James Harrington, an attorney representing both families impacted, said the two families had been brought together by "an incredibly unfortunate, careless act." Harrington called the case "one of the most indefensible cases [he's] seen in a long time" given not only the cremation but the attempt "to sweep it under the rug," he said. Litigation was filed in Wayne County Circuit Court, he said.
One of the families recently lost their mother, Kimberly Moore, who died of cancer at the beginning of September.
After she passed, Moore was brought to Hutchison Funeral
Home. The family had planned an open casket viewing for family and friends followed by a cremation. However, the funeral home cremated Moore ahead of the open casket viewing and on Sept. 19 tried passing off another deceased person at the home as Moore – dressed in Moore's wig and clothing – to Moore's daughter, Bianca Robinson, the families allege.
"My mom was everything to us," Robinson said through tears at the press conference. "I didn't get the chance to say goodbye and I needed it so bad to keep going."
Moore's five children are suing the funeral home and the site's funeral director, Jaimie Hutchison, on eight counts, including negligence and gross negligence. They are also suing Southern Michigan Cremation Services, a Royal Oak cremation company, which Harrington claims didn't have the proper permit for Moore's cremation.
Klint Kesto, an attorney representing Hutchison Funeral Home, said they would know more about how the funeral home's processes broke down and what led to this failure once an internal investigation wraps up. Kesto said there was "no intentionality" behind what Harrington called a cover-up, claiming funeral home staff had thought the woman they were presenting to Robinson was Moore.
"We’re still working through investigating why this happened and in the future we’re going to try to make sure this never happens again," Kesto said.
Southern Michigan Cremation Services did not respond to a request for comment.
The second family involved also lost their mother, Sandra Miller, to cancer in early September. Miller's daughter, Cessley Walker, had seen talk on social media about deceased family members getting mixed up at Hutchison Funeral Home and got worried her mother could be involved given the timeline.
Walker said she called the funeral home, which assured her Miller was not part of the mix-up. Later, however, Walker connected with Robinson online, who showed her a photo of the person Hutchison Funeral Home had tried passing off as Moore. Walker identified the woman who'd been dressed in Moore's wig and clothes as her mother, from a mole and other distinctive characteristics.
"My mom deserved dignity, care and respect. ... Mom, I'm so sorry this happened to you," Walker said at the press conference.
Robinson and Walker both called for accountability and answers, many of which are still unknown pending the funeral home's internal investigation, said Harrington. Thus far, Hutchison Funeral Home's explanation for the error is that the tag identifying Moore that had been tied around her toe got wet and fell off, Harrington said.
Funeral homes in the state are licensed by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, with the Board of Examiners in Mortuary Science providing oversight. It's not clear if state regulators are investigating.
Days after the incident involving Moore and Miller, Joseph Hutchison Jr., vice president of the funeral home was found dead in his home on Sept. 24.
Authorities have not linked his death to the reported error, and details surrounding it have not been made public. Detroit police confirmed to the Free Press that they're not investigating any criminality related to the matter. Given the situation, Kesto said the Hutchison family asked for privacy until after Hutchison's funeral services.
Staff writer Andrea Sahouri contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Family in Detroit funeral home snafu alleges cover-up
