Louisiana WWII Veteran’s Body Dissected in Front of a Live Audience
When the end of your life comes most people expect a nice outpouring of support and love, a funeral, and a proper burial. Some people don’t want all of that and would prefer to donate their bodies to science and help others learn something.
That is just what World War II veteran David Saunders wanted to do when he passed away. David died at the age of 98 in a Zachary hospital from Covid-19. David’s wife, Elsie Saunders made sure that her husband’s wishes were followed after his death. However, LSU would not take his body due to the fact that is was contaminated with the coronavirus. Elsie then reached out to Med Ed Labs, a private company based in Las Vegas whose goal is to educate students. Unfortunately, David's body was not used to teach students at all.
It turns out that David’s body was sold from Med Ed to a company called Death Science who then provided the body to the Oddities and Curiosities Expo. The Oddities and Curiosities Expo proceeded to sell tickets to the autopsy for $500 a ticket. The event lasted 7 hours with an hour break for lunch and took place in a ballroom of the Marriott Hotel in Portland, Oregon. Elsie Saunders was not aware that this event took place until this past Tuesday when a reporter from KING-TV contacted her for a comment.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's horrible, unethical, and I just don't have the words to describe it," Elsie Saunders told a reporter for The Advocate. "I have all this paperwork that says his body would be used for science - nothing about the commercialization of his death."
It seems as though each company is claiming that they were not responsible for what took place in the Marriott Hotel Ballroom. However, I think we can all agree that the dead deserve more respect than this.