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Man: Ashes might be my wife

Written by DeadGirl
Thursday, 21 April 2005
By Beth LaMontagne PORTSMOUTH - A Unity, Maine, man whose wife was cremated at Bayview Crematory wants the state to halt its plans to bury the four unidentified urns of cremains it confiscated from the Seabrook crematorium. In January, Mike Ellis received the ashes of his wife, Dawn, from a Massachusetts funeral home. When the funeral home employee asked him if he was the grandson of the deceased, Ellis became suspicious the cremated remains might not be those of his wife. His suspicions grew when he heard that unidentified cremains and a womanÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s decomposing body were found at Bayview Crematory. For months, Ellis tried to identify the remains he thought were his wife. When DNA testing proved impossible, he found Mike Warren, University of Florida assistant professor of anthropology, who specializes in forensic anthropology and is one of only a handful of scientists who identify severely damaged or decomposed remains. Through a series of tests, Warren can determine if the cremains are from a human and if they were co-mingled. Items such as surgery staples, teeth fragments and traces of certain elements, all which can be found after cremation, are considered clues. "You lose a lot of evidence, but you donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t lose it all," said Warren. "WhatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s key is knowing about the decedentÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s life history." By comparing what is found in the cremains against the medical history of the deceased, Warren can determine whether the ashes were co-mingled. Because Warren found false teeth, a pair of earrings, a surgical screw and staples in the cremains, all of which did not belong to his EllisÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ wife, Dawn, Ellis feels he has the wrong ashes. His wifeÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s remains would have small stints and traces of Barium, Ellis said, as a result of tests done before she died. Warren said he canÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t, in any case, decisively determine if the ashes are from a completely different person, but he said it is possible to make a legal case if numerous discrepancies are found. "If you find five or six or seven instances, you have to decide, is it from co-mingling or is it the wrong person," Warren said. Ellis now wonders if any of the four unidentified urns found at Bayview contain the cremains of his wife. Until they can be tested, Ellis is asking the County AttorneyÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s Office to wait before it lays them to rest. Ellis said he considers the state negligent for not inspecting Bayview and would like the government to pay for the tests. Rockingham County Attorney Jim Reams, who has spoken with Warren about the tests, said he is not optimistic about identifying the remains. Warren must compare cremains to a known human beingÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s medical records, Reams said. "I didnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t get the sense he could take the remains alone and identify them," he added. Ellis said he still wants the tests done. "We may not be totally able to identify them, but I think we can solve some of them. I think thatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s worth it," Ellis said. http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/04212005/news/38009.htm

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Taphophilia?

taphophilia (taf′ō-fil′ē-ă)

ORIGIN:
From the Greek words taphos, meaning "tomb" or "sepulcher" and philia, meaning "attraction or affinity to something, in particular the love or obsession with something"

DEFINITION: 1. An excessive interest in graves and cemeteries. 2. A love or fondness for funerals, graves, and cemeteries. 3. In psychiatry, a morbid attraction to graves and cemeteries

Taphophiles Speak

Have you decided on eternal repose?

	earthen burial
	entombment
	cremation
	donation to science
	cyrogenically frozen
	you mean I'm still alive?

Quote Repository

“Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind; Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave. I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned.”

Edna St. Vincent Millay