Lodge’s Role in a Sinister Scheme
Exploiting the Dead: Inside the Illegal Market
According to New York Post Denise Lodge the wife of a former Harvard Medical School morgue manager admitted to moving stolen body parts smuggling of human parts across state lines. She was part of a plan to sell these parts taken from the school’s morgue to people all over the country. Lodge’s role in arranging these sales online shows how deeply involved she was in this illegal activity from 2018 to 2020.
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Profiting from the Dead: Ethical Questions Arise Amidst Lucrative Trade
Others were involved too like an Arkansas mortuary worker who sold body parts on Facebook and a store owner in Massachusetts who bought a human skull for a strange art project. The fact that they sold things like hands, feet, spines and skulls highlights how much money can be made from selling human remains in the US. The rules around this are not very strict making it easier for this kind of scheme to happen. Even though Lodge tried to explain her actions admitting guilt shows that she knew what she was doing was wrong. This case makes us think about whether it’s okay to profit from dead bodies. There are only a few states that watch closely over the donation and sale of whole bodies. Because of this there’s a big demand for body parts and people are willing to pay a lot of money for them. We need to look more closely at the rules around donating bodies and selling body parts to make sure this kind of thing doesn’t happen again.