New bill in Springfield makes mishandling corpse a felony

Posted on February 6, 2024
The new bill stems from a case in in a central Illinois funeral home. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – The allegations of mishandling dozens of corpses at the Heinz Funeral Home in Carlinville have inspired central Illinois lawmakers to draw up a bill making this a felony.

The complaints include letting bodies just stay in the home and giving customers the wrong set of remains. At a statehouse news conference Tuesday, Sangamon County coroner Jim Allmon said he and other investigators believed – when they began – there was just one body involved.

“At the end of September, we quickly realized that … it was much more than that,” Allmon said. “Close to eighty families had received the wrong cremains. We are talking about half a dozen, at least, disinterments or exhumations that have taken place. The families that still deal with this on a daily basis still call all the time, wanting to know the status.”

Allmon said the cases date to 2019, possibly 2017.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected].

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