The former Harvard Medical School morgue manager who stole and sold pieces of bodies donated to the school has been sentenced to 8 years in prison.
A federal judge in Pennsylvania handed down the sentence to Cedric Lodge Tuesday, capping a two-and-a-half year scandal that ensnared the nation’s most prestigious medical school and exposed a nationwide network of human-remains trading.
More than 400 families whose loved ones donated their bodies to Harvard were possibly affected by the thefts. Kathleen Barber, whose father Richard Lord donated his body to the medical school, told the court Cedric Lodge had stolen the family’s peace. They don’t know what parts of their father may have been stolen or where his remains may be.
To add some context, per this article it seems like they only started after the wife was diagnosed with cancer and had to quit her job and they needed the money. They made 40-95k over the full duration of doing this. This absolutely does not take away from the truly horrific thing done to the deceased and their families, and is absolutely not an excuse, but it feels like a partial indictment on society. It seems like this was not something done solely out of greed or hubris, but desperation. There are undoubtedly others in worse situations who would never do this, but I just wish we didn’t live in a society where people have to ask themselves the question “is respecting the bodily autonomy of this deceased person worth my wife’s chemo this month?” I can’t stress enough that I’m not attempting to make excuses for these people, just adding that context.
Context appreciated.
