“How do trusted people and organizations become cheats? Not just once but repeatedly and systematically?” –Why Do Good People Sometimes Do Bad Things? By Muel Kaptein
Jeffrey Skilling, CEO of Enron at the time of its demise in 2001, said this shortly before the energy corporation’s abrupt bankruptcy: “We are doing something magical, it isn’t a job – it is a mission. We are changing the world. We are doing God’s work.” He is currently serving his 24 and a half year sentence in a federal prison for security fraud and several other high crimes.
We watch with mouths agape as persons in a position of public trust engage in unethical and criminal behavior.
In the past several months, several established funeral homes have been discovered in alleged abuses of the law and the confidence that was placed in them as their businesses self-destructed.
July 2014, Providence, Rhode Island
The last time anyone saw Alfred Pennine, owner of the Pennine Funeral Home of Providence Rhode Island was when he went camping in New Hampshire this past July. Pennine’s body was found hanging at a popular campground by a worker. Pennine’s mother asked friend and fellow funeral director Michael Berarducci to bring her son’s body home. The next day Berarducci made a shocking discovery at the Pennine Funeral Home. He found five bodies of elderly adults, three in caskets and two in “shipping containers” (wooden tray bottom with fiberboard tops). Later the remains of an infant and two cremated remains were discovered. Some of the decedents may have died ten years ago.
The state health officials had revoked Pennine Funeral Home’s license in July.
Further investigation has led to a storage locker in Johnson, Rhode Island, rented by Alfred Pennine where three “badly decomposed” remains were found. The locker was seized for non-payment and auctioned off. The new owner made the grisly discovery of its contents. The medical examiner is examining the remains.
Pennine had his funeral director and embalmers license suspended for two years in 2007. His history of problems with the state is extensive.
He failed to perform a cremation in a timely manner in 2004. He used unlicensed staff to direct funerals at least five times. There was a confrontation with one family as the staff member had no idea how to conduct a funeral service. Pennine failed to report deaths in a timely manner, did not complete burials when promised and used an overdrawn check to renew his license.
This second generation funeral home owner had lost his ownership of the building in March for nonpayment of taxes and was renting the facilities.
August 2014, Dorchester, Massachusetts
Carol and Leo Shamshack paid $12,000 to Joseph V. O’Donnell who operated the O’Donnell & Mulry Funeral Home in Boston area Dorchester, Massachusetts. They were notified that he was trying to cash in the funds for himself. O’Donnell was arrested last April for the larceny and is held on bail. O’Donnell had lost his funeral directors licenses in 2008 but continued to operate the funeral home. The Suffolk County District County Attorney’s investigation led them to a locker in Weymouth, Massachusetts this past July where twelve bodies were discovered. The investigation further led to another storage locker in Somerville, Massachusetts where cremated remains were discovered.
August 2014, Dover, Delaware
Nine hundred-eleven people, members of the People’s Temple of the San Francisco area, went to Guyana with their leader the Rev. Jim Jones, seeking religious freedom. Congressman Leo Ryan, several staff members and reporters flew to the Guyana compound, in response to worried US family members. After meeting with Jones and his cult parishioners, Congressman Ryan offered transportation back to the US for any Temple member. The delegation was followed back to the airstrip by armed Temple members sent by Rev. Jones. They shot and killed the Congressman and several others. Rev. Jones, back at the Temple compound, convinced the members to drink cyanide laced Kool-Aid in a mass suicide. These Temple members’ bodies were flown back to Dover Air Force Base where they were processed. Many of the remains were buried in a common grave with a memorial for the Peoples Temple members in the San Francisco area. Five or six funeral homes were asked by the Air Force to assist in processing of the remains. The former Minus Funeral Home of Dover, Delaware was one of those firms. When funeral home owner Edward G. Minus, Sr. died in 2012, the bank took possession of the building. This August, employees of Eastern Savings Bank and its subsidiary Sunningdale Ventures, Inc. of Maryland went to inspect one of their properties, a former funeral home in Dover, Delaware. They discovered 38 containers of cremated remains; 33 of those containers were clearly labeled. Upon investigation it was learned that nine of the cremated decedents were victims of the 1978 Jonestown Massacre. The remains have been taken by the Department of Forensic Science. There is no indication of wrongdoing by the late Mr. Minus. Why were these remains not found or dealt with earlier? Several of these families were finding out, thirty–six years later, where their loved one’s remains were.
July 2014, Ft. Worth, Texas
The landlords who had evicted their tenants from a building called the police when they discovered what was left behind. In July of this year, twin brothers Dondre and Derrick Johnson were ordered to evacuate the Johnson Family Funeral Home for non-payment of rent. Two weeks after the funeral home had locked its doors, eight decomposing bodies were discovered in the building. There was no refrigeration and no electricity. The decedents were six adults and two stillborn children. The Texas Funeral Service Commission stated that there are five complaints pending against the funeral home and its operators.
Another mortuary that the brothers operated, according to WFAA-TV, had to shut down in 2010 due to failure to pay for $13,000 in penalty fees for violations.
The family of Aundrea “Candy” Jones was cremated by the Johnsons. Her urn is on the mantle of the family home. Her remains were not found in the funeral home but the family was informed the serial number on their urn is not the proper number.
The late Mrs. Jones knew the Johnsons and trusted them and they were chosen for that reason.
The family’s words to the Johnsons are “We trusted you. We were deceived and now we are hurting again.”
The family blames it on greed and temptation.
The Johnson brothers and their funeral home were to be featured in a Lifetime reality show, “Good Grief”. Lifetime has announced that the Johnsons will not be part of the show.
The Betrayal of Trust
Funeral directors are usually successful because they have a respect for people and spirituality, if not outright religious beliefs, that gives a sense of security and trust to the public. When desperate times hit, a few seem to lose their ethical compass. The result is suspicion cast upon all in funeral service.
“We always thought Joe was the best: personable, consoling. It’s just unfathomable. Shame on you, shame on you.” –Carol Shamshack of Quincy, MA who had $12,150 stolen by former funeral director Joseph V. O’Donnell