Nothing is sacred anymore

[Bloody Mad Woman (BMW)]

Thursday December 13, 12:50 PM
Police urged to act in body snatching case
Funeral directors say it is appalling police have not stepped in over the second body snatching case this year.

Carterton woman Tina Marshall-McMenamin died from a suspected drug overdose at the weekend. Her family claims the 25-year-old's biological father snatched her body and buried her in Gisborne when she wanted to be cremated in Lower Hutt.

Funeral Directors Association spokesman Michael Hope says the law is clear on who is responsible for a body, yet police are not taking action. He believes it is because they do not want to get bad press.

Mr Hope says the executor of an estate is responsible for a person's body when they die, and if there is no will, the next of kin takes charge.

Earlier this year, the body of James Takamore was buried by extended family members in the eastern Bay of Plenty, despite his widow wanting him to be buried in Christchurch.

This was front page news in The Dom. The father was estranged from his daughter for Christ's sake. Bringing "culture" into it when it suits them just doesn't wash. I just find this behaviour highly offensive and insulting to those closest to the deceased person.

[MSTRS:Me]

Bringing "culture" into it when it suits them just doesn't wash. I just find this behaviour highly offensive and insulting to those closest to the deceased person.

Agree with that. And is 'stealing' becoming part of that culture?? I mean, why not go through legal channels if they wish to bury with the ancestors...

[CHEVDEB]

Agree with that. And is 'stealing' becoming part of that culture?? I mean, why not go through legal channels if they wish to bury with the ancestors...

too true!! surely with the way the law stands at the moment it is almost condoning these actions.

[Paul in NZ]

Shit yeah - back in the day the, you know, before the misionaries ruined everything and stole all the land. As soon as one of the relatives had walked from Heretaunga (the Hutt Valley) back up to Turanga-nui-a-kiwa) to tell them Aunty had popped her poi (allow a month?) then tribe would paddle down in the family Waka (2 weeks?) to return the body back home...

Things got complicated in summer and a bit runny towards the end of the trip but hey, traditions are important.

Ah hem....

Having said that - I did watch the news item and grandad looked pretty sane. Certainly I'd rather have him as a neighbour than the ladies family if they really are as depicted - gleep - they make the Wests look like the kennedy's

[Paul in NZ]

Oh - theres a bit of cloudy law all around this issue - apparently no one 'owns' a body! (I'm just renting mine)

[White trash]

Grief does strange things to an otherwise normal person.

I remember a rumour of a young chap killed in a bike crash on the Rimatukas. When the mother heard of the fatality she drove her car through the police cordons, dragged his body into the back of her car and pissed off home.

Who knows how someone will react.

[Mikkel]

Considering the fact that the father was estranged it seems very odd to me that he would organise a corpse heist like that. But as WT said - grief can make people react in funny ways...

We had a guy back home in Denmark (he's a bike btw) who took his old dad for a last ride after the dad had expired. He just chucked him in a wheelchair and rolled him out of the ward, put a helmet on him and some proper clothes, sat him on the pillion seat and tied the old mans hands together around his chest. Then off for a ride they went.
I thought that was pretty cool - it did spark a major outrage though...

[98tls]

Reeks of white trash and maoridom.Forever the twain shall meet.

[White trash]

Reeks of white trash and maoridom.Forever the twain shall meet.

WTF? Had nothing to do with it. NOTHING I tell ya!

[98tls]

WTF? Had nothing to do with it. NOTHING I tell ya!

sorry mate.

[James Deuce]

WTF? Had nothing to do with it. NOTHING I tell ya!

It was probably Drew. They all look alike.

Except for the shaved head one with no Mo.

[Hitcher]

A family's grief laid waste by tabloid media? What is the "crime" here?

[candor]

I'd wager Police have legal advice that to force a face off between NZ law and the lore or common law established by the Treaty and associated guaranteed rights ie "absolute self rule in areas that matter or are treasured" could be ill advised....major repercussions risked if either the law or the lore won. ?NZ is grown up enough to withstand that kind of case / debate. Imagine the jury (half white / brown) in a body removal case.

Not sure if the body is legally the owners, families, the states or the polices..
hmmmm.... got told my Mums belonged to Police as an exhibit so we could only see her with permission and them there.

A trial for body snatching would show up just which culture here is living an illusion about being in charge. Law versus lore. Sticky and risky to stability either way to go putting a definitive point on it... best avoided and just let each family sort it as the law "just can't go there". Guess that eventully the Polynesian way will be the norm as the projected outnumbering happens.

Anyway I say it's only white trash if it argues the point through running to media FFS. Its not news ths happens - we're Kiwis so deal with it. Have some sense of place. Sure, argue the point if you want the body, but also be a good sport about who wins the contest!

Having had this experience I've looked at it from lots of angles since 2001.

At the end of the day even arguing it is treating the body as a possession - not something I personally approve of. So I guess I'm saying both sides are wrong (should they haggle). And it is not them, anyway. Do they really care - will we, when we've gone. Hope not - cos hopefully we're far.

[98tls]

A family's grief laid waste by tabloid media? What is the "crime" here?

you honestly believe that dont you.The crime is they were allowed to breed.Like or not,true.

[MisterD]

Make your wishes as expressed in your will about how your mortal remains are treated as binding as they are about your financial remains...rather than just a "direction" that can be completely ignored.

The law is very clear about the hirearchy of "next of kin" that get to make determinations if there is no will - in this case the defacto husband calls the shots. Simple.

The body belongs to the estate of the deceased, anyone else takes it, that's theft.