The Facts
Federal prosecutors revealed on Wednesday that a former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School is among five people indicted by a grand jury for allegedly stealing, selling, and shipping human body parts.
According to court documents filed Tuesday in the US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Cedric Lodge stole dissected portions of corpses — including brains and bones — that had been donated to the school for medical research and educational purposes.
The Spin
Narrative A
Organ transplantation in America is at a crossroads. While this crime is a betrayal to Harvard, its donors, and their families, until the US organ transplant system is overhauled and meaningful changes made, the theft and trafficking of human remains will, unfortunately, continue.
Narrative B
Post-COVID, donations of organs and bodies must continue. Donors not only contribute to medical knowledge but also serve the purpose of becoming a teaching aid and allowing students of the future to attain life-saving knowledge. This heinous crime should not be seen as a deterrent to those seeking to do good.