Woman's body left in hearse for nine days

Graham - The unclaimed body of a 37-year-old woman was left in a hearse for nine days. The body was discovered by police who were investigating complaints of a foul odour.

Police found Linda Walton’s body in an apartment in Carrboro, where she lived alone, on August 11. They thought she had been dead for about a week at that time and had died of natural causes. Because they could not find her next of kin, police called a mortuary service to pick up the body. Nine days later police, who were called about a horrible odour in downtown Graham, found that the body was still in the hearse owned by David B. Lawson Mortuary. Investigators told Lawson’s that they were having problems locating family for Walton. The Charlotte Observer reported that Capt. Joel Booker, of the Carrboro police department, said: “What the investigators told me is Lawson's said, 'Not a problem. We'll put her in deep-freeze.' So off they go, and that's the last we know of it until we heard from Graham police last week." Police and the Alamance County district attorney's office are investigating, and the North Carolina Board of Funeral Service began an inquiry. It had not been determined whether the mortuary service had done anything illegal. Lawson has been a licensed funeral director and embalmer in North Carolina for 34 years.