Company apologizes after live autopsy performed in Portland sparks backlash

By Simon Gutierrez

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    PORTLAND, Oregon (KPTV) — Details about a live autopsy performed in a downtown Portland hotel are sending shockwaves through the community and across the country.

According to the event’s organizer, a company called Death Science, the autopsy was billed as a “cadaver lab class,” which was held at the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront Hotel on October 17th. Tickets were available to the public for between $100 and $500, and attendees were able to observe an anatomical dissection on a human cadaver, both virtually and in-person. Death Science paid more than $10,000 for the cadaver.

“We were shocked and pretty appalled that something like this was going to take place,” said Kimberly Dileo, Chief Medicolegal Investigator for Multnomah County.

DiLeo said she reached out to the Marriott Hotel that was initially planning to host the event and convinced them to cancel it, but the vendor then moved the event to another location, the Portland Marriot Downtown Waterfront.

“Our hotel team was grossly misled by the client about the nature of this event. We understand the public’s concerns about the activities that transpired, and we are reviewing our process for vetting medical event inquiries in light of this situation,” said Martin McAllister, the hotel’s General Manager.

Meanwhile, the widow of the man whose body was used in the autopsy is struggling to make sense of the situation. The 92-year-old Louisiana man died of complications from COVID-19.

His wife, Elsie Saunders, told The Advocate of Baton Rouge: “I have all this paperwork that says his body would be used for science — nothing about this commercialization of his death.”

“I reached out to her to make sure that she was OK. She is 92 years old and lives alone. I was concerned for her. She is completely devastated. Feels completely somehow responsible. It’s a tragedy,” said DiLeo.

Obteen Nassiri, manager of Med Ed Labs in Las Vegas, Nevada, said his company supplied the cadaver to Death Science, but was misled as to how it would be used.

“We are extremely sorry that this donor’s body was used in the manner that it was, which was not our intention at all,” said Nassiri.

Death Science disputes Nassiri’s claims and said the Med Ed Labs was aware of the event for months.

“My goal was to create an educational experience for individuals who have an interest in learning more about human anatomy,” Death Science Communications Manager Jeremy Ciliberto said in a prepared statement. “We understand that this event has caused undue stress for the family and we apologize for that. Death Science will no longer be working with Med Ed Labs and will be taking additional steps in the future when working with medical partners on any future courses.”

An initial investigation into the event by the Portland Police Bureau found no violation of criminal law, though detectives concluded there may be violations of civil law.

DiLeo has asked the Multnomah County District Attorney to look into the matter.

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