According to a lawsuit acquired by The Post, a Texas mother is suing a funeral home for $1 million after claiming the facility allowed her son’s body to “literally rot,” generating an unpleasant stench that caused mourners to vomit.
According to the civil claim filed by Edward Silva’s mother, Julieta Guerra, Integrity Funeral Home at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Houston was engaged to embalm and bury the 43-year-old after his untimely death in 2021.
Silva was set to be embalmed on February 12, but when his mother finally viewed his body on February 23, just hours before his funeral, she alleges it was in a severely degraded state.
The lawsuit his mother filed against a Houston funeral parlor includes a photograph of Edward Silva’s remains in a casket.
District Court for Harris County
The claim alleging negligence and unfair commerce states, “The body was badly decomposed and smelled putrid.” “Edward’s wound remained open and had not been sutured. His chest had a huge hole, a void that was not filled with anything. He did not seem like he had been embalmed. There was an awful odor.”
Because to the “extreme post-mortem swelling of the body,” Silvia’s funeral attire did not fit, and his parents had to cut the garments open so that they could be placed over his body.
According to the lawsuit, Silva’s mother was so heartbroken when she saw her son’s remains that she fainted and said, “This is not my son.”
According to the lawsuit, white gloves had to be applied to his hands because body fluids were leaking from his fingers and ears.
Due to the stench of decomposing flesh, Silva’s parents were obliged to arrange a closed viewing instead of an open one, as they had initially planned. Even bringing in a heavy-duty stink-repellent employed by professional cleaners to conceal the odor was unsuccessful.
“The smell of decay was so distracting,” the lawsuit stated. “Everyone kept covering their noses in an effort to withstand the odor, and some guests began to vomit.”
Guerra’s lawsuit does not explain why the funeral home failed to embalm her son, but alleges that its employees prevented her from viewing him.
The funeral home received Silva’s body on February 11, and it was scheduled to be embalmed the following day. His mother called the funeral home on February 12 to request access to his remains, but was denied.
The funeral for Silva, whose cause of death is not specified, was subsequently postponed because of a big winter storm that left the majority of Texas without electricity for five days.
On February 14, Guerra claimed she drove to the mortuary and discovered it was without power and lacked a backup generator, conditions she believes contributed to the condition of her son’s remains, which she did not view until February 23.
She claims that the funeral home offered her no apologies for the condition of her kid, and she was even asked not to sue them.
A few months later, [the funeral home director] made an unsolicited phone call to Julieta stating, ‘Please do not sue the funeral company or they will release individuals’” The lawsuit continues to assert. The funeral home did not respond to The Post’s request for comment immediately.
Her attorney stated in the lawsuit that Guerra now suffers from depression and has been unable to work due to incessant sobbing and panic attacks. She is requesting $1 million in damages from the court.
»Texas woman sues funeral home for leaving son’s body to “literally rot” and making guests vomit«