Note: Some of the details in this story are disturbing.
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — A Virginia family has filed a lawsuit against a local funeral home claiming negligence in the way their loved one was presented during a viewing.
Torreon Williams died in May 2022 after a grizzly vehicle crash. A week later, his family says his open casket viewing at Snellings Funeral Home in Chesapeake, Virginia, created such a nightmare that the family hired an attorney.
“They provided this family with a grotesque freak show,” said attorney Kevin Sharp. “Maggots pouring out of this young man’s nose. Maggots in his mouth, and on his face.”
Torreon Williams’ mother, Tabitha Worrell, filed a lawsuit.
“I just remember my sister screaming,” Torreon’s aunt, Tiffany Barnhart told NewsNation affiliate WAVY. “I remember the lady [a funeral home worker] placing her hand on her, telling her not to make a scene.”
“And she was mortified by the way they [funeral home] reacted,” said Sharp. “They almost seemed to say, ‘You don’t overreact here.’ You’re the one to blame, not what they had done to her son.”
The lawsuit alleges in some ways, the family has lost Tabitha Worrell, who the suit claims now experiences “nightmares, trauma, sleeplessness, flashback, anxiety, depression, nausea, humiliation, embarrassment, grief and horror.”
Snellings is owned by Norfolk-based Hollomon-Brown Funeral Homes. In a statement to WAVY, CEO Casey Jones said, “The unexpected passing of Torreon Williams is tragic, and we extend our sincere condolences to his family. However, because the events following his death are the subject of ongoing litigation, we do not believe it is appropriate to comment publicly at this time.”
The lawsuit alleges that Snellings did not properly clean and disinfect Williams’ body before the embalming process. The case is set to be heard in Chesapeake Circuit Court’s civil division on July 28. The court is expecting to have a three-day jury trial.