Local News

A family was laying a Lawrence man to rest when his ‘corpse fell out of the casket.’ Now, they’re suing.


A Massachusetts family whose loved one’s casket fell open as it was being lowered into a grave, causing the body to fall out, has sued the funeral home and the cemetery.

The family of Andrew Serrano, a resident of Lawrence who died in March 2019, allege negligence and reckless infliction of emotional distress in the suit filed last Wednesday in Essex Superior Court, The Eagle-Tribune reported.

During the funeral handled by the Perez Funeral Home at city-owned Bellevue Cemetery in Lawrence on April 5, 2019, “one of the side straps on the city-owned casket lowering device broke, causing Mr. Serrano’s casket to fall into the grave and break apart,” according to the suit.

Advertisement:

The “corpse fell out of the casket” in full view of “horrified family members who became visibly distraught and hysterical,” the suit said.

The suit seeks $50,000 in damages.

Messages seeking comment were left Tuesday with the funeral home and the city.

Conversation

This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com