Dead Alabama Inmate Returned to Family With No Brain or Other Organs. Not First Time

The Alabama Department of Corrections is facing scrutiny from the relatives of an inmate whose remains were returned to them without any of his internal organs.

ABC 33/40 News accessed court documents filed by the family of Charles Edward Singleton, who claim when his body was returned to them, it was essentially a hallow shell.

This is the second time such an allegation has been lodged against the state's DOC; late last year, ABC 33/40 reported on a federal lawsuit filed by Brandon Dotson's relatives, who claim in a lawsuit that when he died in November 2021, his remains were not adequately preserved.

His heart was also missing, an autopsy commissioned by the relatives showed, and his remains were so badly decomposed, he had to have a closed-casket wake.

Singleton also died in 2021, also in November. Funeral home officials were told all of his internal organs, including his brain, had been previously removed.

Family was informed organs are usually placed in bags during autopsies, and later put back in the body.

When Singleton's family asked for his organs from the University of Alabama's pathology department, which performed the postmortem, they were told they never received his organs.

Dotson's family would like his heart back, but officials have yet to produce it.

The DOC would not discuss the lawsuit with the station, and defended its autopsy practices.

"In an autopsy, organs and tissues are removed to best determine the cause of death," a statement to the station reads.

"Autopsy consent includes consent for final disposition of the organs and tissues; unless specifically requested, organs are not returned to the body. UAB is among providers that — consistent with Alabama law — conduct autopsies of incarcerated persons at the direction of the State of Alabama. A panel of medical ethicists reviewed and endorsed our protocols regarding autopsies conducted for incarcerated persons."

The DOC did not comment on where the organs could be.

In a statement to The Messenger, a spokesperson said the DOC does not order autopsies.

"Once an inmate dies, the body is transported to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences or UAB for autopsy, depending on several factors, including but not limited to region and whether the death is unlawful, suspicious, or unnatural," the statement explains.

"There was an evidentiary hearing in the Dotson case last week. The ADOC is currently awaiting the court's decision following that presentation of evidence," it added, before noting Singleton "was 74 years old at the time of his death."