Family Sues Funeral Home After Allegedly Finding Maggots on Woman’s Decomposed Body Before Service

A family is taking legal action against a funeral home in Brooklyn, alleging they failed to “properly preserve” the body of a woman who died in her sleep.

Per a report from regional outlet WABC-TV, the intended “celebration of life” event for Regina Christophe—which is reported to have been initially designed as an open casket ceremony—was ruined by the presence of what her mother, Chantal Jean, described as “a monster in the casket.”

The McManus Funeral Home has now been named in a suit filed by the family, who has argued staff didn’t do their part in keeping the woman’s body in adequate conditions following her death on June 24.

Furthermore, the suit alleges, the facility did not come through on agreed-upon services once the body was received four days after the woman’s death.

Jean is reported as telling WABC she observed her daughter’s face looking as though it had “caved in.” Additionally, the mother claimed, “one maggot came out of her eye.”

Attorney Kurt Robertson told the outlet the allegedly botched ceremony “was not a dignified funeral” for the woman, adding that he and the family are convinced the body’s apparent “decay” had occurred while the body was in the custody of the funeral home facility, i.e. not the local medical examiner’s office.

In separate comments to NBC News, Robertson further described the alleged spotting of maggots and described an alleged stench coming from the body. “There were maggots crawling out of the side of her eye,” he said, adding that parts of the skin looked as though it were “melting” from the deceased woman’s body.

As for the lawsuit, it’s reported to see the family seeking unspecified damages. A McManus Funeral Home spokesperson said in a statement shared with WABC earlier this week that its team member had used “best efforts” to prepare the body and also claimed that the family had been made aware of the conditions of the body before the scheduled service, something the family has denied.

Complex has reached out to Robertson’s office for comment.