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You may want to vet what will happen to your body if you check that little “donate to science” box on your ID. It seems simple, right? Medical students benefit greatly from practicing before their life saving skills are required and cadavers allow for a lot more trial and error than would otherwise be expected. I would imagine that people who make the decision to donate their bodies to science would think that they’re doing their part to keep the medical profession prepared to help those in need. Unfortunately, some of the bodies donated to Harvard’s medical school were used to line one of the employee’s pockets. From Law360:
The manager of Harvard Medical School’s morgue stole and sold human remains to a network of individuals around the country, federal prosecutors in Pennsylvania said Wednesday, actions the school called disturbing and “morally reprehensible.”
Cedric Lodge, 55, took the body parts, including bones, skin and other organs, from cadavers that had been donated to Harvard’s Anatomical Gifts Program for use in research and training, according to a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday.
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Cedric Lodge, 55, who was the morgue manager at Harvard Medical School, allegedly stole human remains for years and sold them as part of a sprawling interstate conspiracy involving his wife and others in multiple states. He didn't answer press questions: https://t.co/4zXpJoFkfa pic.twitter.com/KIG6WrJ9hk
— Steven Porter (@reporterporter) June 14, 2023
The scheme is alleged to have run for several years, starting some time in 2018 and continuing till August 16th, 2022. Cedric Lodge and his wife, Denise Lodge are accused of selling various human remains across the country. I know that he managed the morgue at the medical school, but you’d think that at least once during the years that he and his wife allegedly betrayed the trust of donors and their families for a dollar or two that he’d walk by the law school and hear in passing that committing crimes using the mail is a big no no.
The indictments allege conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen goods against Cedric Lodge, and conspiracy and aiding and abetting transportation of stolen goods against Denise Lodge, Maclean and Taylor.
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As it stands, it looks like Harvard had no idea that any of this was going on. If you would like to read the school’s statement on the developing case, you may do so here.
If you are interested in following the case, you can find it under U.S. v. Lodge et al., case number 4:23-cr-00159, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Harvard Morgue Manager Charged With Selling Body Parts [Law360]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at [email protected] and by tweet at @WritesForRent.