Oregon officials contacted a family to let them know that their relative had been found dead from a drug overdose, but months later, they admitted they had made a mistake.
On Sept. 11 the family of Tyler Chase was told that he had died and the body was cremated on Oct. 1. The Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office issued a death certificate after identifying him.
The family received the ashes of someone whom they believed was their relative.
Three months later, on Dec. 19, officials told the family that they had made a mistake and that Chase was still alive. Chase’s cousin Latasha Rosales spoke to KGW-TV about the bizarre call they received.
“I just lost it,” said Rosales. “It is so hard to believe how something like this could even happen. It just makes no sense to me.”
County investigators said they contacted the family as soon as they discovered the error. They did not release the actual identify of the dead man.
“I can’t even imagine how they feel,” Rosales said of the man’s family. “Their child, their brother, their loved one was cremated. He passed away without them even being notified.”
The medical examiner’s office confirmed the story to KGW on Monday.
“Misidentification is extremely rare but has been reported in a small number of cases nationwide,” said the office in a statement.
Officials said the mistake was made because the dead man had in his possession Chase’s wallet, including his temporary Oregon driver’s license at the time of his death, and the family had declined to identify the dead body as belonging to their relative.
“Although television often shows people identifying their loved ones at a Medical Examiner’s Office, in reality, most Medical Examiner’s Offices do not have viewing facilities,” the statement continued. “Families are able to view their loved one and confirm their identity at the funeral home making the arrangements.”
The office said it would update its identification methods in order to prevent a similar error in the future.
Here’s a news report about the incident:
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