Harvard University has agreed to pay $53 million to settle class action lawsuits filed by families whose loved ones’ remains were stolen and sold on the black market by the former manager of its medical school morgue.
Preliminary approval for the settlement was granted recently by a judge from Massachusetts, settling cases of 47 families of people who had donated their bodies, which may have been mishandled between 2018 and 2023.
Cedric Lodge, 58, an employee at Harvard Medical School’s morgue for almost 30 years, was sentenced to eight years in federal prison last month for theft of organs, brains, skin, hands, and faces from cadavers donated for medical research.
He and his wife, Denise Lodge, sold the body parts from their New Hampshire home, shipping them to buyers in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. Prosecutors described a “ghoulish scheme” in which Lodge enabled buyers to enter the morgue to select remains. In one disturbing instance, he provided skin to a buyer who planned to turn it into the morgue to select remains. In one disturbing instance, he provided skin to a buyer who planned to turn it into leather for a book.
Harvard was accused of turning a blind eye to Lodge’s behaviour over the years. Although the lawsuits were first rejected by the courts, they were eventually revived by the state’s highest court in October.
George Daley and Bernard Chang, deans of the Harvard Medical School, stated that Lodge’s actions were “despicable, abhorrent, and a flagrant betrayal of our values as a medical community.”
Along with money, Harvard promised to provide families with a statement condemning Lodge’s actions and describing program changes. Furthermore, Harvard decided to create a scholarship for medical students starting from 2027-2028 in memory of anatomical donors.
2026-08-21 20:57:00
