7. pay-per-view | Death Science/Med Ed Labs

     A Louisiana WW2 Veteran decides to donate his body to science in a final act of patriotism. Only to be used in a pay-per-view event in front of a paying audience. 

 Sources: 

1. Med page: Professor Conducted Autopsy against familys wishes

2. Daily Mail: outrage as live autopsy is carried out on WW2 Vet who died of Covid

3. Oregon Live: Body donated to science dissected in front of paying audience

4. NYT: A body donated to science was dissected in front of a paying audience

5. Reuters.com: Cadavers in the ballroom

6. Youtube clip 1

7. Youtube clip 2

8. The Advocate: WW2 vets body dissected publicly horrifying his widow

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Transcript

Odeya: [00:00:00] When I think about what's next for me in the afterlife, the concern for my body does not follow. Why should it? I'll be dead, and just like everything else on this planet, our bodies will be left behind. Currently, I have no specific wishes, and that's probably due to my arrogance of thinking that this is something I shouldn't have to worry about for a long time.

I'm not part of any religion or believe in anything specific, so this leaves a sense of freedom for my body to be disposed of however I or a family member pleases. Also, in more recent years, the options have become much more diverse, so seeing as we're on the topic, let's check out a few of our options.

You can become a biodegradable egg that is planted with a tree to help it grow. Okay, let me explain. Capsula mundi, which translates to world's capsule in Latin, provides biodegradable pods that can host an entire body or ashes inside of it. 

It can break down easier than traditional wooden coffins and instead of a tombstone a tree will take its place, already scoring you brownie points for the next life environmentally speaking.

[00:01:00] For the more materialistic being, you can become a diamond. 

That's right, sparkle and dazzle your loved ones in the afterlife in carbon form.

Life gem takes a portion of your ashes, heats and presses them into a diamond, then cuts it to your specifications. 

Although a humble 3 carrot will set you back $32, 000 so you better start saving now,

Or perhaps, in a last petty attempt to annoy the neighbours, pack yourself into a firework and burst across the sky in a sound polluting spectacle.

Heavenly Stars Fireworks provide a quote, "stunning range of professionally fired tribute firework displays that are designed to your specific requirements". 

Colour schemes can match your favourite football team or even choreograph a round of your favourite piece of music. All this starting at a jaw dropping price of £399.

Still on the fence? Fine. What about a medical education program? How else are we to escalate in breakthroughs if we don't have any bodies to study? 

You can help students become the master of their field and become an important resource towards groundbreaking [00:02:00] research to help improve the understanding of the human body.

Imagine that. What an incredible gift.

I'm host Odeya. This is Uncharitable. 

Today's episode will contain details about death, so listener discretion is advised. 

Fun fact, Before the Anatomy Act of 1832, the only legal supply of cadavers for anatomical purposes in the UK, were from those who were condemned to death or sentenced to dissection by the courts, 

 A Supply that quickly ran dry for medical schools who needed at least 500 bodies a year to meet medical demand.

Odeya: Balancing on the fine line that bodies were not seen as property, side door deliveries and backhanded dealings became popular between body snatchers and doctors, motivating an unethical act to scoop the whole clean for a morbid payday. 

Diaries from bandits detail a typical process beginning with scouring local funerary announcements to find where the newly dead would be buried.

There, a quick bribe to a watchman would secure first dibs on the cadaver, where the resurrectionalist began by digging a small hole near the head [00:03:00] of the coffin, then proceeded to drag the body out with a rope before filling the grave back in, leaving many family members none the wiser. 

In the US, if the graves ran empty, Bandits would hire women to portray a grieving relative and claim the bodies of the dead are poor houses, or attend funerals to ascertain any hardships the snatchers may encounter later during the exhume, while some just skip the step entirely and burt their way through a shortcut to get a quick payday.

A method of choice adopted by William Burke and William Hare, who provided stiffs to Dr. Robert Knox, a father of modern anatomy, who told the men, quote, "We would be glad to see you again should you have another corpse to dispose of", after delivering a dead lodger of hers to compensate for lost earnings.

The pair took knocks up on his offer, murdering 17 lodgers and drifters in their sleep before wrapping them up in a bow tie ready for the next anatomy class. 

Ten months later, the pair were arrested with Burke receiving a death sentence, which ironically meant his body was donated to the Royal College of Surgeons supplying the institution one final time.

You can visit his death mask and a wallet bound in his [00:04:00] skin at the Surgeons Hall Museum if it pleases you. 

But today, the reign of body snatching and birking is long over, with a protocol that is much more ethical in its place. There's more respect, more legislations, more paperwork, everything you need to ensure your generous gift makes it to the right people.

Or at least, that's the assumption. 

David R Saunders, born 5th December 1922 in New Orleans, was born to be a patriot. It was in his blood. He grew up along the Mississippi River, where his father was a tugboat captain. He would recall swimming in the river with friends throughout his childhood, a sweet escape from the muggy heat and realities of the Great Depression.

On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor occurred, which encouraged David to join the merchant marines before boarding the SS Mayo on February 1st, 1943. However, throughout his travels, David became ill during a stop in Egypt and was advised against returning to the military. But the flag waver refused, this time enlisting with the army in [00:05:00] 1944, where he served as a railway electrician, and later helped transport Japanese prisoners of war before he saw his first combat in the Philippines, 

quote, "I was scared but I did my duty to the best of my ability", he admitted.

The war ended soon after, but David wished to serve his country further, and so was deployed again in the Korean War. In an interview with World War Two Museum in New Orleans, David stated he was proud what he did for his country and hoped the younger people of today would remember his legacy of his generation.

As a devoted Christian, his religion helped him get through both wars and come out the other side with a sweet attitude, which served him well as a devoted husband to two wives, one of whom was Elsie Saunders. 

David had known Elsie for six decades before they married. When Hurricane Katrina hit, they moved to Baton Rouge for a fresh start.

In their later years, David became the head of an electrical firm, before hanging up the polo shirt for the retirement village life years later. 

In a last act of service, David submitted his final wishes to Elsie to donate his body to medical science. "It would be a great way to [00:06:00] maybe help someone", Elsie told her.

So when David passed away on August 24th 2021 from COVID complications, Elsie vowed to complete his final wish and contacted Louisiana State University to donate his body. Who were inclined to turn the widow away due to her husband's cause of death. It was disheartening, but luckily a local funeral home could recommend the alternative for a company named Med Ed Labs who were happy to accommodate.

The company were established in providing medical and surgical education, as well as training to those pursuing the field. In exchange for our husband, Elsie would receive his ashes when the facility no longer had use for him. It was exactly what David had wanted, so without hesitation, Elsie sent our husband to be prepared through church funeral services.

Who struck a business arrangement with the lab before they arranged transportation to the facility. It wasn't until two months later, Elsie would learn exactly what became of her husband's body. 

Death Science, an educational platform that focused on the scientific fields of forensic, medical, and mortuary science, [00:07:00] provided visual and audio content through their YouTube, TikTok, podcast, and Instagram accounts. 

You could explore your curiosities through their enactment style videos, where host Jeremy Ciliberto would break down common misconceptions surrounding the taboo topic.

Naturally, Death Science liked to offer their followers more. Through their website you could purchase e -courses and e -books to satisfy your interest in the forensic and death investigation field. 

The hyper realistic simulated scenarios were taught using real actors, props, fake blood and handmade bones.

And with over 1 million subscribers on TikTok, it was clear they had a large market to educate. 

Do you watch a lot of crime shows? Let us know in the comments, what is your favorite crime show? But have you ever considered maybe becoming a crime scene investigator and not know where to start? Like, what's the real difference between an entomologist and a serologist?

Who does an autopsy and who collects the evidence? Like, do you have to go to university, police academy, or can you literally just start in the field right now? Fortunately, we made a free ebook. [00:08:00] It literally shows you the career path options you have towards forensic science and death science. Get your copy for free right now at deathscience.

So when the company decided to host a live cadaver class at a hotel in Portland in October 2021, they struck an agreement to purchase a fresh body from MedEd for the presumed amount of just over 10, 000 US dollars. 

That body belonged to David R. Saunders. 

Speaking about forensic pathology, we're now offering classes for you to learn more, like our live forensic autopsy and anatomical dissection classes. And you can get your in person or virtual tickets at cadaverclass. com. 

Cadaver Class, brought to you by the Oddities and Curiosities Expo in collaboration with Deaf Science, promised attendees they would get to observe a forensic autopsy, anatomical dissection of a full human cadaver, A real chance to get up close and personal in between the removal of vital organs, whilst finding new perspectives on how the human body can tell a story.

For [00:09:00] up to £500, refunds not accepted. V. I. P. attendees were placed in the front row with special observation and prodding privileges. 

A real bargain if you're into that sort of thing. 

The day began at 9am, where retired professor Dr. Colin Henderson began by removing the sheet to expose the body, ready to conduct a full external exam.

He then explained that the man had quote, "donated his body to science," before drawing a surgical knife to cut into the chest cavity, head and limbs of the cadaver, then removed several organs in the brain, placing them on a separate table nearby. 

Through the procedure, the professor boasted to the audience that this was exactly how he taught medical students throughout his academic career at the University of Montana.

He then paused to allow participants to gather closely and touch the extracted remains. 

Among them, was an undercover journalist from the King 5 News Network, who attended when the station received a tip from a viewer. 

Whilst recording, the journalist noticed David's name tag on his wrist which sparked curiosity about the body's place of origin.

However, the station [00:10:00] struggled to confirm his identity, even after scouring through national databases of public death records and online obituaries, which led which led to the involvement of local medical examiners to determine who exactly David Saunders was.

and on November 2nd, Elsie Saunders received a call, 

quote, "As far as I'm concerned, it's horrible, unethical, and I just don't have the words to describe it, said the widow."

She could never have imagined her husband would be part of a, quote, "commercialization of his death". 

"I didn't know he was going to be put on display like a performing bear or something. I never gave consent for this, this disrespectful spectacle. This was not what I had signed up my husband's cadaver for".

It soon emerged the event had attracted concerns the moment it was advertised. Chief Medical Legal Investigator, Kimberly DeLeo, contacted the Portland Police and Oregon Medical Board after receiving a similar tip to King 5, who opened an investigation when Kimberly warned them about the potentially illegal autopsy, before calling the downtown Courtyard Marimot, who was [00:11:00]scheduled to originally host the class about her concerns.

The hotel quickly cancelled, so organizers moved the event to downtown Waterfront instead, who refused to yield to Kimberly's advice, and when the organizers were tracked down for a statement, All three denied any wrongdoing. 

Jeremy's Ciliberto began by confirming the class was not a pay per view event.

Quote, "My goal was to create an educational experience for individuals who have an interest in learning more about human anatomy. I can guarantee that the family knew that his body would be used for medical education. It was in the contract. We understand that this event occurs under stress and we apologize for that.

I had been in touch with MedLabs for months and made it clear the attendees were not exclusively medical students but ticket holders. They agreed to my request and provided the cadaver, supplied the anatomist, tools and equipment for the procedure, as well as a completed serology report. They also booked the venue for the course and was responsible for handling the cadaver before, during and after the event".

But Obteen Nissiri head of MedEd denied any [00:12:00] acknowledgement of this, quote, "We had no knowledge at all, and Jeremy flat out lied about what he was doing to the body. We didn't know about a paying audience. We don't do that. We have never done anything like that ever. Jeremy deceived us repeatedly, stating the donor they requested would be utilized solely for an educational, astronomical dissection, instructing academic students, paramedics, and personnel within the forensic pathology fields".

Okay, but Kimberly DeLeo still had questions. Like how Jeremy, who had no professional background in medicine or death investigations, was able to purchase a body from the lab. 

Who's profession was primarily filmmaking and creating macabre art for home decor, 

or why the autopsy was performed by an individual who according to the Oregon Medical Board lacked an active license.

Quote, "Colin Henderson does not have an active license to practice medicine in Oregon said DeLeo. Autopsies and death investigations must be done by people with added licenses and certifications". 

Something Colin did have once according to his bio, where it boasts he [00:13:00] received his PhD in biology from the University of Mexico in 1985, before specializing in the physiological ecology of an insect and mammalian diet selection relative to plant biochemical defenses.

Yeah, no idea what that means. 

But in 1986, he flipped his game to teach anatomy and physiology courses to students majoring in health professions. 

MedEd did not identify Henderson by name in their statement, but claim a quote, "Certified anatomists handled their dissection and that all protocols and procedures for handling Saunders body with utmost respect were followed".

Speaking of, did anyone else find the choice of venue a little concerning? The company assured the public that mock surgeries and other training events are globally held in hotel meeting and convention rooms.

Okay, but isn't there some kind of protocol or regulations to follow, especially when the world is only just returning to normal post pandemic?

That's a hard nope according to at least 6 states in the US, with federal centers for disease control and prevention [00:14:00] issuing no guidelines for seminars involving human body parts, allowing hotels and lab providers to just make it up as they go along. 

You may have more luck with the New York Health Department, who do require rooms used in these circumstances to provide bio safety features such as a working sink, but good luck in getting them to enforce it.

And what was Downtown Waterfront's response to all of this? Initially, the hotel kept a tight lid on things and referred to the following laws which, as I've just mentioned, simply don't exist. 

Quote, "We follow detailed protocols to protect safety and we take appropriate steps to comply with appropriate laws. We are aware of concerns regarding a recent event and we are looking into them further."

That response seemed appropriate at the time until Elsie revealed David's cause of death to Seattle News Station. who immediately broadcasted about guidelines of handling a COVID infected body whilst Naziri struggled to explain how a contagious cadaver ended up in that ballroom in the first place.

Quote, "In a hotel ballroom, is there adequate ventilation? Is there PPE available? What about the cleanup [00:15:00] afterwards"? 

All these are questions that needed to be answered. Jeremy insisted that according to the lab, the cadaver tested negative to any infectious diseases but the company would have to answer these questions themselves.

But as a precaution, death Science advises those who attended to get an immediate COVID test. Obteen Nissiri said the same, quote, "Before we took custody of the body it had tested negative, nobody at the dissection would have been at risk". 

Oh thank god we cleared that up. After all, this was an official oddities and curiosities expo, where all items seen at their shows are sustainably sourced, so everything would have been done by the book.

Oh apologies, I think I might be mistaken, because it turned out the oddities and curiosities expo firmly denied any direct association with the event. 

Quote, "we handled only the ticketing for the dissection and were not involved in organizing the event. We simply passed the buck to another company called Deaf Science.

The host worked with a lab, which we wish to confirm was absolutely not an entertainment style demonstration. [00:16:00] It was an educational event." 

The participants who attended the show, sorry, educational event, agreed. When journalists caught up with them straight after, they praised Henderson's respectful approach towards David, saying, quote, he didn't do anything that would upset a family member.

Perhaps, but I don't think many people are fond of the idea of being displayed and cut apart in a manner that entertains a niche obsessed with corpses. 

It's certainly not something you can just sign up for, not that I've checked, and I'm sorry to say but the family were indeed, upset. 

Elsie immediately demanded her husband back from the custody of Med Ed, stating she no longer trusted the company to cremate and send the correct remains back to her.

Instead, her husband's body would be sent to a funeral home of her choice, but not before it was confirmed it was actually him. 

After arriving at New Orleans International, in a casket draped with the American flag, David was transported to a mortuary, where grand nephew Harold Atkins represented Elsie in identifying the body.

Quote, "We're glad he's home, and look forward to a proper cremation and [00:17:00] memorial service so we can honor this man's life. With everything that has transpired, to be honest we just wanted to make sure it was him, because there's really no guarantee of that". Stepping out of the mortuary, Mr. Atkins confirmed it was indeed his uncle, But describe the state of his body as quote, "not dismembered but butchered. To see a loved one in that context, from every part of the body, just sickens me".

A guilt ridden Greg Clark, the owner of Church Funeral Services, who had initially recommended the body broker to Elsie, after Louisiana State rejected David's donation agreed, quote, 

"My understanding was that it was for universities. It was that they would supply universities with the cadavers for them to be able to do training and education. You know, doctors and pathologists, and stuff like that. They originally contacted us directly because they were looking for a funeral home in the area that could handle their needs. They struck a business arrangement to process and prepare the bodies, including the removal and storage.

I had never heard of a ticketed public dissection. And [00:18:00] was totally disgusted. The funeral home helped prepare David's body for transport to med ed. But we will no longer be working with the company after this experience. We are extremely sad for his widow because this is not what her intentions were."

The family were just glad to have him home by this point. Their focus no longer fixated on the violation their loved one had endured. Instead, they wished for the world to acknowledge David as the combat veteran who served his country continuously. 

"We should have done more to learn what death science had planned for the body amid Nazuri. We should have been more arduous and done more investigative research to find out exactly what they were doing".

That you should, sir, because just a 15 second Google search would have told you exactly who these people were. The lack of due diligence might have prevented this clusterfuck of a media storm you experienced, but instead, as always, profit dominates over the details.

And of course, in yet another missed opportunity to bring closure to the family, the law failed to acknowledge any wrongdoing from the event's organizers. 

Portland Police [00:19:00] Spokesman Nathan Shepard confirmed the department had concluded that quote, "though their dissection may have violated civil law. There were no criminal laws which directly speak of such circumstances, but only private citizens, not government agencies, can press civil claims". 

Kimberly DeLeo disagreed, quote, "The way Saunders body was handled could be considered abuse of a body. Anyone interacting with a body during autopsy or death investigation must wear PPE, including a medical gown, face mask, eye protection, and gloves. But what was seen in the footage were attendees gathering closely, only wearing rubber gloves and a face mask, leaning over the cadaver and touching it, while the anatomist performed the dissection in a grey shirt with no gown in sight. It's devastating to families. On top of grieving for the death of their loved ones, they have to deal with the fact that they were desecrated, and that's the last memory that they have".

"I have offered my sincere apologies to Miss Saunders, said Naziri. We respect our donors and their families and appreciate their generous gift. I told her I'm [00:20:00] sorry and I'm on her side". 

Elsie expressed again for David to be remembered in a manner that didn't reflect from this. "He was a good husband, good to his first wife and then to me he was very patriotic, a good man and a good Christian". 

To date, almost every state in the U. S. allows anyone, even if they do not have appropriate training, to sell a donated body. 

On the 22nd of June, 2023, a bill to put a stop to this was introduced under the Consensual Donation and Research Integrity Act.

At the time of this episode, the bill has been referred to the health subcommittee awaiting the next course of action.

Uncharitable was created by me, Host Odeya with a vision to illuminate the unethical shadows within philanthropy. 

As an independent podcaster, I need all the help I can get, even if it's a discounted e course on forensic pathology. 

So if you like the show, consider contributing to the community by [00:21:00] following us on Instagram or leaving a review.

I'm gonna mention a few who left a message this past month because this is my currency, my motivation to keep producing this show. So much oblige to Christy and Jennifer for the feedback. It was great and I hope you continue to enjoy the episodes. Uh, and also Maverick12 for your review, you're a real peach for that.

If you care enough to reach out as well please do so, you can find me waiting anxiously at the edge of my seat. 

For further reading about the story, I have included sources in the show notes as well as extra content on my blog, which is now available on my brand new, terribly formatted website for you to all frustratingly navigate through.

You're welcome. Till next time.