Police in northern Texas say a woman’s Aurora-bound cadaver fell out of a transport vehicle early Tuesday and was left on the side of a roadway.
An officer in Denton, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, found the body of 79-year-old Nell Joseph covered in medical-grade ice and in a black body bag strapped to a body board about 1:15 a.m. on Tuesday.
Authorities believe Joseph’s body fell out of a broken window, unbeknownst to a driver moving her to Colorado for a medical research organization.
“There was no crime committed,” Officer Ryan Grelle, of the Denton Police Department, told The Denver Post. “We’re just trying to figure out how it ended up there. We’re trying to figure out how it ended up on the side of the road.”
Officials say Joseph had lung disease when she died in Fort Worth, Texas, on Thanksgiving. Her family decided to donate her body to Science Care — a medical research group — so the organization could study chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The driver of the vehicle transporting Joseph’s body told authorities he didn’t realize the body had crashed through the back window of the van.
“I couldn’t believe they lost my mom out the back of a truck,” Terry Harris, Joseph’s son, “And apparently they didn’t know.”
Science Care has stopped using the transportation firm that was moving Joseph’s body amid a review of the incident.
“We work with a third-party transport company for donors that originate in Texas,” said Melinda Ellsworth, a spokeswoman for Phoenix-based Science Care.
Ellsworth said there appears to have been a mechanical failure in the transport vehicle and that the cadaver “slid out.” She said the organization has been in contact with the donor’s family and is working with them.
“They do want to continue with donation,” Ellsworth said. “They understand there was no malicious intent.”
Joseph’s body was being moved from Global Mortuary Affairs in Mesquite, Texas, to Science Care’s facility in Aurora, which is one of five the organization operates.
Police called the situation “just a tragic accident,” saying their investigation into the case has been closed.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or @JesseAPaul
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
