Harvard ruled as legally liable for theft of body parts from morgue

A court in the United States has ruled that Harvard can be sued by individuals who have donated their loved ones’ bodies to the university’s medical school. The deceased’s former morgue manager sold them on the black market.

A lower court’s decision that had previously barred the university from legal action was overturned by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on Monday.

Additionally, the court found that Harvard Medical School’s Anatomical Gift Program’s managing director, Mark F. Cicchetti, is legally responsible.

Chief Justice Scott L. Kafker characterized the case as a “macabre scheme spanning several years” in his ruling, describing Cedric Lodge as the ex-manager’s ex-manager who scavenged and robbed body parts for research and teaching purposes.

47 of the individuals whose survivings were handled improperly by Lodge and his associates between 2018 and 2023 are facing legal action from Harvard.

The lawsuits allege that Harvard ignored American Association of Anatomy guidelines and was careless with its morgue security.

In his decision, Kafker claimed that Harvard “had a legal obligation to provide for the dignified treatment and disposal of the donated human remains, and failed miserably in this regard, as Harvard itself acknowledged.”

In 2023, Lodge was fired from Harvard Medical School, where he was referred to as “morally repugnant.”

The case could be brought before federal justice if Lodge transports stolen organs, including heads, brains, skin, and bones, across state lines as part of the scheme.

One conspirator purchased two dissected faces from Lodge for $600, according to Kafker’s ruling. In exchange for his services, he also assisted the conspirator in “finding human skin to provide to a third party into leather.”

Another conspirator, according to the ruling, “made 39 payments totaling $ 37, 000 over PayPal to Lodge and his wife for body parts,” including a $ 1, 000 transaction with the memo “head number 7” and a $ 200 transaction with the memo “braiiiiiins”