Letter letters

Letter: Towns Always Had the Legal Burden of Disposing of Unclaimed Corpses

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To the editor:

The Darien First Selectman [Jayme Stevenson, a Republican] sent a letter to our legislative delegation expressing her concern regarding “a new financial burden” being placed on towns and municipalities with respect to, “the state shifting the burden for the disposal of unclaimed bodies from the state to cities and towns.”

In her letter, the first selectman calls this action a “new municipal mandate which shifts the burden for the logistics and disposition of unclaimed decedents to municipalities.”

It’s important to set the record straight. This responsibility is not new — it is and has been the responsibility of the local municipalities. The state, however, has historically been performing these duties for cities and towns for years. As Connecticut Mirror reporter Keith Phaneuf states in his May 26 column, “though state law makes cities and towns responsible for final disposition of unclaimed decedents in their jurisdiction, this has not been enforced for years but rather handled by the state.”

Perhaps in good financial times this was something the state could afford to do. Today with bipartisan calls to address the deficit by reigning in spending, this is one service that unfortunately cannot be performed by the state any longer.

Connecticut Coat of Arms 5-26-16

Death & Taxes in CT: Stevenson Objects to State Telling Towns to Dispose of Unclaimed Corpses

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In the face of Connecticut’s ongoing budget problems, the state is shifting the burden of keeping and disposing of unclaimed corpses to cities and towns. Darien First Selectman Jayme Stevenson is objecting. “This goes beyond human decency,” Stevenson wrote in a letter to Darien’s representatives and senators, members of the state’s two legislative bodies. She asked them to try to find “a way to financially support OCME [the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner] so they can restore their critical services.” She included a copy of a letter (or email) from the chief medical examiner, James Gill, who said the state estimates that there are about 100 unclaimed bodies a year in the state.