Board looks into allegations of mix-up at funeral home

The family of a woman who was mistakenly cremated after a bizarre mix-up at a Nova Scotia funeral home declined to participate in an inquiry Tuesday, saying the process lacks transparency and is geared to help the industry.

The Nova Scotia Board of Registration of Embalmers and Funeral Directors held a closed-door hearing in Halifax to determine what happened at the Serenity Funeral Home in Berwick in December.

Relatives of Sandra Bennett say they arrived at the home on Dec. 27 for a visitation but found the body of another woman dressed in Bennett’s clothing in the casket.

They say a second body was presented to them, but again it was not their 65-yearold relative and they were told Bennett was mistakenly cremated.

Adam Tipert of the funeral directors board said its findings could lead to changes affecting other funeral homes in the province.

Serenity Funeral Home has not responded to requests for comment.

Paul Walter, lawyer for the Bennett family, said Tuesday that his clients had declined to participate, adding that it was “quite clear this board is essentially run by people in the funeral industry.”

“We decided to back out of it,” said Walter.

“It’s just not a process geared, from my perspective, to benefit my clients.”

Walter said under the hearing process, his clients could be questioned but would not be given the opportunity to ask their own questions of representatives of the Serenity Funeral Home.

Walter said Sandra Bennett’s husband, Gary, is “not happy in the least.”

“He didn’t want to participate in something that was in essence not giving him or his relatives the degree of respect and dignity that they should be receiving in this process.”

Walter wouldn’t explicitly say Tuesday whether the family is suing the home, and wondered whether the hearing’s findings would ultimately be made public.

In an email later Tuesday, a spokeswoman for Service Nova Scotia, which issues licences for funeral homes, said the board had indicated that there would be a public decision on the licensing within 30 days.