Coroner apologizes after family buries wrong person
SANTA ANA, Calif. - An official is apologizing to a family who buried an unidentified man that was wrongly identified by the coroner's office as their son.
Sheriff's Lt. Lane Lagaret, a spokesman for the coroner's office, says in a statement Saturday that the department extends regrets to the family of 57-year-old Frank Kerrigan "for any emotional stress caused as a result of this unfortunate incident."
Kerrigan's parents buried a body identified by officials as their son on May 6. Eleven days later, a family friend called them to say their son was alive.
Lagaret says the Orange County Sheriff's Department is conducting an internal investigation into the mix-up.
He says that all identification policies and procedures will be reviewed to ensure no misidentifications occur in the future.