Call Kurtis Investigation Prompts DA To Look Into Unlicensed Funeral Operation
SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY (CBS13) — The San Joaquin County District Attorney's office is now looking into an unlicensed funeral operation.
One family said their loved one looked like a monster, keeping them from having an open-casket funeral.
"It was like something out of a horror movie. It really was. It was like something out of a horror movie, the condition of his body," Angela Ealy-Hale said.
READ MORE: 'He Looked Like A Monster' Unlicensed Funeral Operation Inside Church Leaves Family Horrified
Ealy-Hale was talking about the condition of her son-in-law Lamark Otis Day Jr., who died suddenly last year. After his death, she called the number she had for Cooley's Funeral Home in Stockton, not realizing it was no longer in business.
"All of my relatives," said Ealy-Hale. "We've gone to Cooley's."
The funeral director, Stephen Cooley, kept the phone number and funneled business across twn to Boggs Tract Church where he's the pastor. The location was not licensed to handle funerals.
Experts say there's no way Cooley properly refrigerated the body of Lamark Otis Day Jr., causing it to decompose.
The San Joaquin County District Attorney's office is now asking people to contact them if they know of any misconduct tied to Cooley.
