Ex-NFL player’s widow sues Alabama funeral home for ‘cremating husband’s brain without consent’

A year after former New Orleans Saints player Glenn Foster Jr. died in police custody, his family sued an Alabama funeral home for allegedly cremating his brain without his consent, thereby preventing a proper examination.

According to a statement from the family’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, the funeral home company, Carriage Services, destroyed Foster’s brain “in breach of the contract between the parties.”

Foster Jr. died in December 2021 with reported signs of “neck compressions and strangulation” while in Alabama police custody, according to an independent pathologist hired by his family. Dr. Michael Baden, a renowned pathologist, indicated that the 31-year-old African-American man did not die of “natural causes,” according to a 2021 statement from Crump. Foster’s family believes that he was having a manic episode that led to his arrest.

A year after former New Orleans Saints player Glenn Foster Jr. (pictured) died in police custody, his family sued an Alabama funeral home for allegedly cremating his brain without consent, thereby preventing a proper examination.

The lawsuit was filed by Foster’s widow, Anny Pamela Foster, who continues to try to get answers about her late husband’s death. Defendants in the filing include Carriage Services, Garden of Memories Funeral Home, Schoen and Son Funeral Home, John Appel, Jr. and ACORD Corporation.

Carriage Services, Garden of Memories Funeral Home and Schoen and Son Funeral Home did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.

‘Mrs. Foster and her family have already experienced so much tragedy, and the mishandling of the remains of her beloved husband and the destruction of her brain add insult to injury,” said co-counsel for the plaintiffs, Ken Abbarno. , it’s a statement. ‘The defendants in this case had a job to do, and their gross negligence and incompetence is nothing short of horrifying.

“One year later, significant questions remain as to why Mr. Foster died in the back of that police car,” Abbarno continued. Pickens County still owes Ms. Foster and her family answers about the death of her husband. For the family to now also have to deal with the mishandling of her body is truly heartbreaking.”

Foster was arrested for driving twice the speed limit and evading police through a rural Alabama community on December 3. Police say he was handcuffed and taken into custody without incident.

“He was healthy when we put him in jail,” Reform (Alabama) Police Chief Richard Black said in 2021.

Attorney Benjamin Crump (center, pictured in April 2021) is working with Foster’s family and enlisted Dr. Michael Baden to review a medical examiner’s findings in the case.

Foster’s family arrived in the city on December 4, 2021 and posted a bond on the condition that police bring him to Birmingham for any necessary medical evaluation, according to a police statement. But the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office had arrested Foster on December 5, 2021, when he allegedly punched another prisoner.

While handcuffed, Foster fought a Pickens County officer and a corrections officer, injuring the officer in the nose and hand, according to court records obtained by The Associated Press.

Foster had an initial appearance before Pickens County District Judge Samuel Junkin where he “failed to comply and refused to answer any questions” as well as demanding an attorney, the judge wrote in an order Monday.

Based on police observations and how Foster behaved, the judge said Foster was “not mentally stable and a danger to himself and others” and ordered him held without bail for a mental evaluation at the Center. Safe Doctor Taylor Hardin in Tuscaloosa.

But what happened from then until his death in December 2021 is unclear. A few other details have been released, including the results of an autopsy.

Dr. Michael Baden, a well-known pathologist who works with the Foster family attorneys, said the 31-year-old African-American man did not die of “natural causes,” according to a 2021 statement from attorney Benjamin Crump. Baden previously made headlines by questioning the New York medical examiner’s ruling that pedophile Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide, suggesting that he was indeed murdered. He has also looked at other high-profile cases, such as the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year.

His parents have since revealed that he battled bipolar disorder, telling The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate that they suspect he did not receive adequate treatment in custody.

“Keeping people in their custody alive is literally the lowest standard we can set for a law enforcement agency, and something the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office was unable to do,” a statement read. of 2021 from the attorneys for the Foster family.

Pickens County owes the family the truth about Mr. Foster’s tragic death. These findings are deeply troubling and call for a full and transparent investigation into what happened to Glenn Foster Jr. and how he lost his life. We will not stop until we get answers and justice for Glenn, his family and his community.’

Originally from Chicago, Foster has been living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He played two seasons for the Saints at defensive end, appearing in 17 games in 2013 and 2014.

The Alabama State Bureau of Investigation was the circumstances surrounding Foster’s death in February. Spokesmen for the office did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for an update on the investigation.

Foster was born in Chicago and played college football at Illinois. As an undrafted free agent, he signed with the Saints and appeared in 17 total games during the 2013 and 2014 seasons.

He had eight tackles, three sacks and seven hits to the quarterback.

He was released by the Saints before the 2015 season and then began a second career as a realtor, developer and contractor.

He owned a countertop business with two retail stores.

“I really can’t find the words to adequately express it,” Terron Armstead, Foster’s former Saints teammate, wrote on Twitter. ‘Rest in peace Glenn Foster, we will miss you brother!’