The state is investigating a complaint that a Fairmount Mortuary manager in Denver forged a doctor’s name on a death certificate in order to expedite the paperwork for a burial.
A former employee of the mortuary contacted the state Department of Regulatory Affairs and complained that assistant manager Gary Thomas forged a doctor’s signature; the ex-employee also said other death certificates had been forged.
Fairmount Mortuary manager Duane Johnson denied the allegations and said he wanted to wait for the investigation to run its course before commenting further.
If the allegations are proved true, DORA would submit the findings to the Colorado attorney general for a decision on prosecution, said Karen Gerwitz, spokeswoman for DORA.
The complaining Fairmount employee resigned effective April 12 because he suspected forgery. He declined to have his name published because he fears he will not find work in the industry.
Documents provided by the employee show Dr. Pamela Tyrrell signed a death certificate of a 98-year-old man Jan. 15.
But the man’s death certificate had to be corrected because there were errors on the document, including the date of birth.
The former employee says that rather than delaying the burial process and waiting for the doctor to sign a corrected version, Thomas amended a new death certificate Jan. 21 and signed Tyrrell’s name himself.
The two certificates do appear to have different signatures in the space where an attending physician attests to the cause of death. But the signature is little more than a curved line, making comparisons by a non-expert difficult.
Tyrrell did not return a call seeking comment about whether she is aware of the allegations her name was forged.
Thomas was recently assigned by DORA as a “practice manager” to oversee reforms at Pipkin Mortuary, Gerwitz said. Pipkin Mortuary was recently placed on three years’ probation by DORA after mixing up two bodies and burying a woman in the wrong casket and grave in January.
