El Paso County Jury Awards $500,000 in Funeral Home Negligence
In January 2015, a man was killed in a car accident. His body was sent for burial services. Before the services, the family discovered the wrong body was in the casket. They filed a lawsuit for emotional distress caused by the mix-up. A jury found the funeral home responsible for the family's mental harm and awarded damages.
Case Information Updated: October 2025
Case Outcome
- Outcome
- Verdict-Plaintiff
- Amount
- $500,000
- County
- El Paso County, TX
- Resolved
- 2017
Injury & Accident Details
- Injury Type
- Psychological / PTSD
- Accident Type
- Other
- Case Type
- Emotional Or Mental Injury
Case Overview
In January 2015, a man died in a car accident in El Paso County, Texas. His body, along with that of another accident victim, was transported to a funeral home. At the direction of the deceased's father, a second funeral home then made arrangements to transport the body for burial services.
Just before the services, the deceased's family opened the casket and discovered the body of the other accident victim inside instead of their loved one. In March 2015, the deceased's wife and father, on behalf of themselves and the deceased's minor son, filed a petition in the District Court for El Paso County, Texas. The plaintiffs sought damages for negligent infliction of emotional distress, alleging that the initial funeral home was responsible for the delivery of the incorrect corpse.
After a trial in April 2017, a jury rendered a verdict for the plaintiffs, finding the initial funeral home 100 percent liable for the mental harm caused. The court subsequently entered judgment, awarding the wife $300,000 and the father $200,000 in emotional distress damages, totaling $500,000. An appellate court later affirmed the trial court's decision.
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