CREMATORY SCANDAL THAT CHANGED THE DEATH INDUSTRY 

OK deathlings, we have a book winner. Everyone congratulate and secretly resent Mike! That was shockingly popular so you can count on me doing giveaways again with all sorts of death goodies.

how is her hair so perfect????? I mean yea grotesque crime but....her hair.....shiny...

Cop Show: The criminal was a mastermind that evaded capture for years. Crime Show: Locals informed the police of suspicious corpses in the area for months with no action taken by law enforcement.

the fact that people can straight up call the authorities and say "there is a Bad Thing happening" and it just. gets ignored makes me so cynical

Am I the only thinking “how could you not smell decomp?”

When the McDonald’s cremation machine is broken again

Ok but how did authorities ignore people saying there were DEAD BODIES not once but twice? Like that's something you should probably look into right away...

That was a great lawyer this guy had. First, this is Georgia and a young black man had desecrated hundreds of bodies in horrific ways. The fact that he ONLY got 12 years is short of a miracle. Second, the lawyer posited a really good explanation for why this guy was off his rockers--mercury poisoning. The guy was verifiably nuts, and this was a pretty plausible explanation on why he was nuts.

I remember when this scandal broke. I was in college and working at my family's funeral home part time. My dad had so many people coming in panicked that they had someone else's ashes. He spent the next several months reassuring families that none of our cremations were done by that facility that we had our own local facility that was exclusively used. He said they could take a tour any time they wished. He would give them a tour immediately so they could be reassured that nothing was being hidden or covered up. Cremations still dropped by half for the next several years.

I REALLY REALLY like that you don't put "scary" music behind your videos. I love this kind of topic because it's interesting, but the music makes my paranoia spike and I can't sleep. Or exist very well. So thank you.

As grotesque as it sounds, the mercury poisoning theory makes a lot of sense. Also, police (I believe) ignored reports for years.

I remember when our neighbor found her reclusive ex husband dead in their old house. She told my mom that she knew before finding him that he was dead because the house smelled like "someone left a pack of ground meat out on the kitchen counter for a week." I couldn't imagine the odor that smacked the detectives in the face when they opened that crematorium. 🤢

My Cousin Olly was one of the people he did this to. The "cremains" we received back were a combination of wood and other detritus ashes. My cousin was found on the property, partially decomposed, first suspected identified because he had an amputated leg, later through DNA.

My mother was afraid the crematory workers would do something...what? Who knows. But, she wanted someone to be a part of the whole process. I asked to be able to stay in the viewing room, with the curtains open, for the whole cremation. From body in, until body was fully cremated. The box we took with us with her ashes was still warm-ish. We then went to dinner, at her favorite restaurant, bringing her (the box) in with us. When we walked into the lobby, one of her favorite songs played. It was a very dramatic, and strange, day, to say the least. The way our family usually was. It was also very cathartic and the perfect way to honor and celebrate her. Thank you for your straightforward take on your business. Your humor is also spot on!

I'm not an expert in police protocol, but I'm pretty sure when someone says "There are bodies around this specific place" that becomes top priority to investigate.

I was a Correctional Officer for the State of Georgia when this happened. When he came into the prison in Jackson, Ga., they had to put him into protective custody so other prisoners wouldn't kill him. He seemed like a normal guy.

Hold on. McCracken Poston? MCCRACKEN POSTON? WHO--WHO ARE HIS PARENTS?! I HAVE QUESTIONS

Imagine eating your mother's ashes and only finding out years later that it might've actually been cement mix. How embarrassing.

An important aspect of this story that you didn't cover is that Tri State was apparently never inspected. Georgia only had two crematory inspectors at the time, and officials couldn't provide records of any inspections of Tri State. With proper inspections, there is no way this could have gone on for so long.

Was watching Forensic Files today and they interviewed McCracken Poston and I was like, “OMG, Tri-State!” You could never forget a name like McCracken Poston.

Listen, the 15 episode podcast could be called “The Devil Went Down to Tristate” and there could be interviews with experts about grief and the victims, and then talk to doctors about brain injuries from football and mercury poisoning. There could be lovely interjections of southern culture and obvious some good good bluegrass music and explore how it really affected people + how they coped.

Person: Hey there are bodies around here Police: Lol K Person: Hey... year later. Also there are bodies lying around Police: Aight lmao Person: I found a bone nearby Police: HOLD UP WE’LL BE RIGHT OVER

*“Their fluids leaking out freely....”* Oh man, my family has a lot of people who work in the medical field so we tend to talk about severed heads over thanksgiving dinner, but this is making me feel queasy 🤢

One of my friend’s dad had passed away and sent there for cremation...they thought they had him back and he was one of the bodies found on the farm 😢

I lived in Georgia when this happened and was dear friends with someone whose grandmother and brother may have been victims. You cannot believe the anguish the family went through over this incident.

"Cremation machine broke"

I lived in Georgia at the time and this is the first I'm hearing about it. Here. Now. In the horrors of 2020. Seems fitting.

My uncle’s body was one of the bodies found in the woods. My mom lived with my aunt in the room they kept my uncle’s urn and said it was always very eerie in that room before they found out what happened 😳

"Cremation Machine broke" "understandable have a nice day"

I vividly recall an incident from my childhood that really made me think about the crematory industry. My family was taking a road trip through the southwest, and we stopped in the middle of nowhere in Nevada for a break, and so my brother could try out the metal detector he got for his birthday. Suddenly, we get that wonderful low "boooop" noise that signals gold, and he starts digging....only to find gold teeth. And then a couple finger bones. We noped right out and drove to the nearest sheriff station to make our report, and left the area ASAP from being so creeped out. Six months later, we get a call from the sheriff and find that the local crematory had been dumping bodies in the desert and providing god knows what in the urns to family members.

i was born here in georgia. i have lived here all my life and when my grandmother passed in 1997 we had her cremated. when this story broke on the news my family called the funeral home that was in charge to make sure they did not use this crematory. thank god they hadnt but it was a scary thought

Look, if I ever get around writing a novel, I'll make sure to have a red-hearing character called McCracken Poston. This is too good to be true.

Your hair and makeup looks exactly how I'd expect a undertaker to look. It's perfect

My great Aunt was one of the bodies found buried without a casket on the property.We still don't know who's ashes they gave our family....Very Sad !!!!

I did that with my cat I chose to be there when he was going in the cremation it was really difficult to not want to grab him and run , they did an excellent job he looked like he was sleeping, I left a silver bracelet with him as a collar, when the bones were taken out to grind the pieces of silver needed to be picked and removed for the grinding I was present trough all of this after the grinding the pieces of silver were put on the urn , I knew my baby was the one in that urn 💔

I lived in Ga at the time - and I've always wondered "WHY"? I remember that it was hard to find judges and a jury to try this case, as everyone who ever had a relative cremated at Tristate had to recuse themselves. This case is still haunting - at least mercury poisoning provides some sort of explanation - but still......

I had the honor, years ago, to do work on the civil side of that case. I handled almost all the evidence. It was horrible. Bodies stacked like cord wood. Never seen anything close since. Hope I don't again.

LET THE BODIES HIT Th- everyfreakingsurfaceofthecrematoryproperty

My grandfather was one of his victims.. we have never found his remains so we still don’t know if the “ashes” they gave that we released were really him. The pain hasn’t gone away from this. 😢

I'm actually a Georgia native, currently living in Colorado, and I was living in Georgia when this story broke (and when this story began long before it ever became a story). While at Dragon Con one year (2011 I think) I attended a panel featuring the lead detective from the GBI on this case. He had a lot to say. It was fascinating, and I still remember a ton of the information, and his perspective on the case to the point that I've had to resist writing a novella here in the comments section. Thanks for the video on this one. The mercury poisoning theory is one I haven't heard before.

We found out about this when Georgia State Troopers came to the home of my cousin Margaret's husband, John. Margaret died 4 weeks earlier and was supposed to have been cremated. The cops asked John if he could come and identity a body. He did. It was Margaret who was supposed to have been cremated 4 weeks earlier. The cops took him back home and asked for the cremains, which he gave them. After they left he committed suicide. The urn was found to have Portland cement and dirt in it. The urn which my uncle's ashes in it from the year before was also Portland cement and his body was never found.

"Desecration of a corpse wasn't a felony in Georgia at that time....sure is NOW, though! Lol

A good friend of mine a neighbor that lived right next door was in his upper 80s. His job was cremator for a cemetery near us. I could hear him leaving at all hours. Boy him and I had some great conversations about certain mortuary's around here

Fun fact, one of the National board questions to be a funeral director is knowing that this happened in Georgia. Thanks Caitlin for helping me pass my capstones!

Okay, I've been waiting for this video. I live down the road. Although the name of the road has been changed by the wife to discourage gawkers. As such, it's not terribly surprising that when I asked my research and investigation professor (also the head of the GBI forensic unit) what his most memorable case was, this was the one that made it to the top of the list. He actually released the full report to us so, on one computer or another, I actually have all the photos from the scene, and the scene was considerable. They had to get a mobile morgue in from Delaware just to begin dealing with this necromancy. However, his story remains one of my favorites so I'll share it as it was told to me and to the best of my recollection. He was leaving work early to play a round of golf when he got the call from a newbie telling him that someone had reported bodies at the local crematory to which he laughed a bit and said, ' it's a crematory. What did you expect?' the kid was unshakable though so he told him he would wait a bit for him to run and check before he left. His expectation was that he was about to get a call from a rather red faced newbie admitting his mistake. Clearly, that's not what happened. What he didn't know (and may not have known if not for jurisdictional requirements) was that this was not the first call. All the others had gone to the police. The family was well known, well respected, and the police laughed them off, until... A semi spotted a glaring problem and couldn't stop to call until he crossed the state line. The call was forwarded to the GBI rather than the local police, and the newbie had taken it. My professor was still laughing it up when the next call came in. The newbie said, 'Sir, we have a problem. There's a body propped up in the front seat of this hearse.' My professor stopped laughing. If that had been the end, it still would have been a bit shocking, but the photos from the scene show coffins stacked to the ceiling of the garage full of as many bodies could be shoved in them and leaking into the floor. When space at the crematory ran out, bodies quickly made it to the residence next door, and the scene photos reveal a children's playset with swings and a slide.... And open coffin and exposed corpse laying in front. The photos are so jarring that you really can't imagine how on Earth the local police had missed it.

Can you imagine being a family member of someone who was just tossed outside to rot and have them give you cement dust and think it was their ashes for years !?! Ongg

“I apologize, there are no answers.” Well sir, could you try?! I hate when someone does something really messed up and doesn’t give any explanations as to how it happened. This whole thing makes nonsense and is very upsetting and seems like there was definitely thought out into it (getting cement dust to the families instead, leaving bodies around for years, just all of it).

A couple of years ago I was told that my mom's mom and one of her family friends ...well, body parts of theirs had been discovered somehow when they were supposed to have been cremated at a funeral home in Montrose, CO. I guess this place made some money selling body parts and gave families fake cremations. Heard about this scandal? Wish I could help get my grandma together...

I’m from Cleveland, Tn (just north of Chattanooga on your map) And my uncle was one of these bodies that was left on the property without being cremated. I think my mom said he was identified by his dental records. It’s been a long time since we’ve talked about, so I’m not sure of all of the details.

I have been helping an older friend plan her interment (easily confused with internment, which my spellchecker loves) and this, this scares her more than anything. She has asked me several times if I will "make sure" she is cremated. She brought it up often enough I finally I said to her "Friend, I will stand there and watch you burn, I promise!" I thought she would either be offended or laugh, but she just said "all right, thank you." Okaydoke, then.

As someone with a traumatic brain injury, I haven't felt the urge to move decomposing bodies of any kind around my property. But maybe I'm just weird.

When I die I really don’t care what is done with leftovers, because I promise when I’m done with it, it should be labeled “No useable parts herein contained”

I found your channel recently after my mom died of lymphoma. She died in the hospital and my dad and I both wish her doctors had been more transparent and given her the option of dying at home in hospice rather than endure the experimental chemo that killed her. I've always been drawn to death and I never knew that there was a movement of death revolution that might succeed in bringing some humanity to the process of dying. I want to be involved somehow. Thank you for what you do.

My father does not know where his parents are buried, because the cemetery started burying people on top of other people and changing the markers (it is a headstone-free cemetery so they just have the marker near their feet). The scandal about it happened before I was born, and my dad doesn't like to talk about his family, so I have only visited the place my dad thinks their graves are once.

I grew up down the block from Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, IL, and my parents still live there. Emmett Till’s remains are there, and there was a huge scandal with the owners re-selling plots and burying bodies on top of each other. I remember the FBI being there for at least a week recovering remains to identify. The day the news broke, there were cars all up and down our street, family members panicking that their loved ones weren’t resting as they were supposed to be. It was something I’ll never forget.

For me the body half-way-out the machine was the most surprising.

A very similar story happened at a funeral home in Maryland. The Morning Glory Funeral Home to be precise. They had bodies stacked to the ceilings. Like cordwood, as they say. This turned out to be a financial scam, as cremation was expensive, and so they just pretended to cremate bodies and just kept them in the back. So I'm gonna take a guess that the Marsh family were doing the same thing. Money is the answer to most crimes. I feel bad for the families of the discarded corpses though. I can't imagine finding out that my grandma was really just tossed somewhere.

Mercury poisoning was not something I expected, but that does make sense.

I remember this happening as a kid and my uncle who was a mortician and licensed funeral director was mortified when it happened but he had embalmed alot of his inlaws and his own family and since watching this channel i can see how he did and not be all weirded out

I was in high school when that happened. it's creepy knowing that you live so close to something that insane. And, I know the book was already won a long time ago, but 73. Just wanted to play too.

My then uncle worked the case as a Federal Agent and he was never the same after. TriState was in my mom’s hometown and the people there are just now getting back to where they trust to be cremated again.

As for the difficulty of being with your dead, I agree... death has become so distant, so regulated and yet mysterious that our minds come up with scenarios so much worse than the reality of the situation. My brother-in-law passed away several years ago and his wife had him cremated. At the wake, my around-8-or9-year-old niece (not his daughter) was very quiet, and as part of a conversation we were having I told her it's OK to be nervous, or scared, or sad...that her feelings were her own and perfectly acceptable. I then told her she could always ask me any questions about anything. First she asked if I meant that, and I said absolutely, any time, about anything. First, she said the idea of cremation terrified her and asked if my brother-in-law could feel it when they "burned him." I told her no, that the part of him that felt things was gone by that time, and that they had gone out of their way to make sure he wasn't in pain even before he died. Then she told me she was afraid to go up to the remains... I don't remember what she called it, but I think she was expecting a burned body in a casket. I explained that there was a beautiful urn, and a painting of him, and that it wasn't scary... but she still seemed anxious about it. So I told her I'd go with her if she wanted me to, and she asked if she could hold my hand. There were a few more questions, and I answered them as gently and honestly as I could. We went to the front, and viewed his painting, and the urn. Hopefully it made things less scary for her. It's OK to be sad, but I can help but wonder how frightening her thoughts were before that. And for the record, I know she could have asked her parents and they would absolutely have done the same thing. But so often we get caught up in all the things that need to be done at a time like that, and sensitive kids can end up not wanting to add to a parent's stress, or to be a bother, or whatever. If we talk about this stuff more openly, think how many kids (and maybe even adults, who knows) could be spared all the unnecessary anxiety. There's enough in this world to be anxious about, why add to it?

"Mad Hatter Syndrome" is a really serious condition to anyone that it affects.

RU-vid, suggesting make-up tutorials: "Meeeeh..." RU-vid, suggesting animal videos: "Meeeeh...." "Crematory scandal.." - "YESSSS!"

I was so disgusted by this...I will never forget it! The funeral home I worked for sold people on the fact that the remains weren't sent out to another city for cremation. We had our own on site.

My husband played football and went to school with Brent marsh . he said he was weird before all this scandal came out

Yes girl!! I'm about an hour away from Noble & giiirl!! The bodies were EVERYWHERE!!! It was horrible for the families & community as a whole.

I started watching your channel yesterday...I can't stop watching these now. Does this make me a Deathling?

I'm sorry... McCracken Posten?! Seriously?

I remember they had to kill all the fish in the nearby lake so nobody would catch and eat them.

I love how animated you are when you speak, you’re as much a pleasure to watch as you are to listen to, keep the vids coming 👍👍👍

I love your attitude about these topics. It’s fun and kinda goofy while directly addressing serious topics

It's 3AM and I've just been binge watching this woman 😍❤️

I moved to Georgia in '01 and remember when this story broke. It was everywhere and new sordid details were coming out every day. Reminded me of growing up in Wisconsin when the Dahmer case started.

Your voice is so pleasing; I listen to these videos in the background as I work and although I might not have sought out all of the information I have learned, it has kept my brain happy and I thank you!

I've literally never forgotten the name McCracken Posten. It keeps me up at night.

Being present is so god damn hard but it gives a sense of closure. When my dog died I didn't want to believe she gave her final breath. I wanted to believe she was still with me and I would get to take her to the dog park again. Even when I put her in the freezer I felt like I was hurting her. When I took her out she was in her basket bed with her blanket and I still believed she was alive. She was still there in front of me. It wasn't until I had her ashes that I accepted she was gone. I had never cried so hard in my life

“Lemme tell you what”. I love her

I am busily binge-watching your videos right now and I just wanted to thank you for such awesome content. I've lost all four of my grandparents recently and your videos are bringing me comfort, as strange as that might sound to some people. So thank you!

I remember when that happened. My boss actually had a family member found on the property who was supposed to have been cremated.

Kraken Puss is not a bad name for lawyer to be honest.

Why am I fascinated by this. Never considered myself to have such morbid curiosities but here I am, subscribed after binging this channel for two days. I think it helps to have such a cheerful host...

I like how your eyes twinkle when you're describing this stuff. A beautiful and smart lady such as yourself is a good thing.

This happened on a much smaller scale in my hometown- Louisville, Ky. Owner, Nate Anderson, said he'd just "forgot" about two bodies and remains/cremains of 18 more back in 2007. The crazy thing is, his FH was right out on a main stretch downtown and it had no electricity when the bodies were discovered. Bad form.

One of my mentors served on the team that investigated, cleaned up, and identified the decedents in this case. Horrible situation. Ironically he spent more covering up his crimes than just doing what he was contracted to do.

I only recently discovered your channel and just wanted to say you are awesome to watch. Very informative, and (dare I say it) super funny! you seem like a great person. looking forward to binge watching all your episodes.. !

This was an event that stayed in the back of my mind. Thanks for the closure on what could've happened, the resolve.

I was slightly distracted by the buck in the background...perfect placement. Do you leave the room and give him a nice pat on the head? I would.

Obviously this business was way more than this kid could handle.

Just wanted to say I've been watching for a while now.... I'm so chuffed that I found your channel. I love everything deathy and even gruesomey( if that's a word, which I'm pretty sure it's not), but interesting is the main caveat and you and the topics you cover are the definition, so Thank-you for entering my daily life, cheers Becky

Okay, I just found your channel and am loving your videos, and I LOVE your hair in this vid!

I was living in GA while this was unfolding, and every time I turned on the news, the body count kept rising. It really did feel like you were watching a Stephen King novel unfolding. About a year later, Law and Order used it as their latest "ripped from the headlines" plot. I've been in OH since 2008 and hadn't heard the later developments. I discovered your channel only recently, and have been rushing to catch up. Love your work and glad I found you!

Funfact: in Norway around the 1950's the corpses were preserved with plastic or in clay which stops the rottening-process. Nowadays when someone stops paying grave-rent the grave of the earlier familymembers can be re-used for new bodies. Especially the graves between 1950-1960s will contain either bags of bodyfluids or bodyfluids combined with rotten flesh because of the stopping of the oxidation process 🤮

I am from that area in Georgia and I can tell you somethings about that situation that will freak you out. My dad owns a restaurant near the crematorium and we would open just for the FBI, GBI, and local sheriffs officers . They would tell me everything, it's MUCH worse!

Thanks for yet another interesting video. You handle a sometimes uneasy subject with grace and dignity. It saddens me for the families whose family members remains were so disrespected by someone they trusted. Wonder how many spirits are still haunting the area since they are not at peace. Know of any claims of hauntings in the area where the crematory once stood?

When my dad passed away last year, I was very happy to be a part of the process. We had an amazing funeral director who seemed pleasantly surprised with my picking his brain. I asked if I could have some time with my dad which of course he said I can have as much as I need - he wanted to put some makeup on his neck where bruising occurred, but I asked him not to. And asked why that happened, he explained it’s common with how he passed. He told us,my mom and I could be there for cremation and I jumped at the opportunity. I wanted to make sure my dad was taken care of and that I was there for that final drive. I asked him how many people did what I did, accompany their loved ones body to the crematorium. To my surprise, only 2 in his 30 year career. Me and 1 other family. The gap between the living and the dead saddens me really. That we feel so detached from death... that we must have the body wisked away quickly - ‘don’t look’ they say. But I found being with his body was almost healing in a way. I wish we could have had an at home funeral - or at least kept his body in the house longer. My mom was with him for a long time, while I had to fly from across the country. The funeral home took him before I could think to ask.

I don't agree with being thrown into a hole with a stranger when I'm dead but a family rotting hole sounds kinda wonderful.

Again, thank you so much for another informative video!

Hey Caitlin 😊 I really enjoyed this video and it was insightful. My mother was cremated last December and we didn't have a chance to view her body. I had covid at the time so I couldn't go into my parents house to see her or anything either when I got the call from my little sister. It is really difficult having the last time I ever saw my mom be Thanksgiving and I never saw her again. I keep telling myself it is not rational that the funeral home would have done anything unscrupulous but there is a part of me that feels like I have no guarantee that these are my mothers remains since I wasn't able to see any of it to have it sink in.

Why do so many of these stories have “he was a football player” ?? Brain injuries probably