Lawsuit Accuses Funeral Home of Body Mix-Up Affecting Grieving Family

A Sacramento funeral home, La Paz, is accused of mistakenly sending a stranger’s body to the family of deceased Francisco Quintanilla, who had planned his funeral. The family discovered the body mix-up and was left with a horrifying memory of seeing a decomposed body in El Salvador. The situation raises concerns about the qualifications of the funeral home’s staff and their mishandling of the case.

A disturbing incident has emerged from a Sacramento funeral home, whereby a family alleges they received the wrong body of a stranger instead of their deceased relative. The lawsuit claims that La Paz Funeral Services mistakenly shipped the body of an unknown individual to a family in El Salvador, instead of Francisco Quintanilla, who passed away in November. Quintanilla, originally from El Salvador, had worked in the U.S. and supported his family financially.

Quintanilla’s family sought the services of La Paz Funeral Services, which promises shipping of bodies internationally along with necessary documentation. However, attorney Rob Marcereau representing the family stated that the service they received was far from what was promised, highlighting that the funeral home exploits the Latino community. On the day of the funeral, instead of their loved one, the grieving family discovered a stranger’s corpse in the casket, which Marcereau described as a nightmare.

Upon informing La Paz about the error, the family was reportedly directed to return the stranger’s body to the airport, while La Paz staff were unaware of the whereabouts of Quintanilla’s remains. Eventually, La Paz located the actual body, but the family was devastated to find it in a severely decomposed state when they opened the casket in El Salvador. The lawsuit implicates La Paz’s owner and employees for allegedly lacking the qualifications to provide the promised services.

Marcereau emphasized the lasting trauma inflicted on the family, stating that their final memory of Francisco was profoundly disturbing. Furthermore, the family claims that they have not received any refund and have encountered difficulties in contacting La Paz for resolution of this issue.

The troubling situation surrounding La Paz Funeral Services highlights severe lapses in funeral care and the profound impact such errors can have on grieving families. The poignant story of Francisco Quintanilla underscores the urgent need for accountability within the funeral industry. The family’s anguish and the alleged negligence of the funeral home call attention to the necessity for proper qualifications and standards of care in the handling of deceased individuals.

Original Source: www.whsv.com