JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. (WDRB) -- Weeks after several bodies were discovered at a southern Indiana funeral home, the business owner appeared in court for the first time.
Randy Lankford with Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center in Jeffersonville was in the Clark County Courthouse on Tuesday for a preservation of evidence hearing.
"We asked the judge to require Mr. Lankford to preserve certain information, written documentation, electronic information in his possession, and overall, we were successful," attorney Marc Sedwick said.
Sedwick and attorney Larry Wilder are representing several of the families.
This all stems from a police investigation after receiving information concerning the funeral home's condition.
Maj. Isaac Parker with Jeffersonville Police said authorities found 31 deceased individuals, "some of which were in the advanced stages of decomposition" at the funeral home, along with the post-cremation remains of 16 people.
"So today, what we were able to do was confirm that Mr. Lankford, one, is someone who will come to court, which was one of the things we were concerned about whether he would show up when ordered by a judge," Wilder said.
Wilder said he has spoken with several families. One family recently told WDRB News that they held a celebration of life for their father and had what they believed to be his ashes, then got a call from the coroner saying their father's body was one of the bodies discovered at the funeral home.
"We've seen a lot of tears, we've heard a lot of angry voices ..." Wilder said. "I've done this 37 years. I've been involved in all kinds of different cases. I've never seen one that has covered so many different emotional expressions from so many different people that have been hurt or are a part of it."
WDRB News has tried reaching out to the funeral home for comment, but the voicemail is full and directs callers to reach out to the county coroner's office. Online, it says the funeral home is "permanently closed."
Sedwick said next, there will be a status conference in early August. He said for this hearing, several families were present either in person or virtually.
Related Stories:
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- 31 bodies found at Jeffersonville funeral home, police say
- Source: Bodies stacked up at Jeffersonville funeral home after owner got behind, AC went out
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