Funeral homes in Uvalde, Texas have reportedly declined to handle the funeral services for Robb Elementary school shooting suspect Salvador Ramos.
The suspect’s remains have been stored out of town for three weeks as his family decides how to proceed, according to a report by The Houston Chronicle.
Uvalde County Justice of the Peace No. 4 Eulalio “Lalo” Diaz Jr., who also serves as Uvalde County’s de facto coroner told the Chronicle, “Once they got to him, the funeral homes in town said, ‘We don’t want to deal with him.’”
“I had to store him for three weeks,” Diaz said. “As the funerals for the victims were going on, I was still dealing with what to do with him. It was a stressful time.”
Three days after Ramos was shot and killed by police who confronted him in a Robb Elementary classroom, the Bexar County medical examiner performed an autopsy on his body on May 27.
However, Uvalde’s two funeral homes, Hillcrest Memorial and Rushing-Estes-Knowles Mortuary, were inundated with handling services for the alleged shooter’s victims.
The managing funeral director at Rushing-Estes-Knowles, Taylor Michelle Massey, told the Chronicle that they decided to decline to handle the service out of respect for the shooting victims.
“All of our staff grew up in Uvalde County and attended school in Uvalde County and believe that everyone deserves a dignified and respectful funeral service,” Massey said.
The director went on to say that, “in the weeks following the shootings of May 24th, we were caring for 17 families … through what is probably the most difficult time in their lives.
“Under the circumstance, we did not feel it would be appropriate or in the best interest of the families for which we were caring to take custody of the remains of the individual that caused their pain,” Massey said.
Diaz said that it took weeks for the body to be released after being kept in a morgue in Lockhart, Texas, just east of San Marcos, which is more than a two-hour drive from Uvalde.
Ramos’ family eventually found final arrangements through Castle Ridge funeral home in Crystal City, according to Diaz’s statement to the Chronicle.