UCLA apologizes for apparent sale of body parts
Donor families sue school
 |  Henry Reid, the director of UCLA's Willed Body Program, was arrested Saturday. |
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 Director of UCLA program arrested
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UCLA Willed Body Program |
Anyone concerned that parts of a family member's donated body were sold should contact UCLA by phone at 866-317-6374 or by email at access@mednet.ucla.edu.
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LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- The chief of UCLA's medical school apologized Monday for the apparent sale of parts of bodies that were donated to the school and announced steps to ensure such practices do not recur.
"These alleged crimes violate the trust of the donors, their families and UCLA," said Dr. Gerald S. Levey, vice chancellor of UCLA Medical Sciences and dean of the UCLA School of Medicine. "We are deeply sorry."
Two people have been arrested in the case, and police said more arrests could occur as the investigation continues.
The Willed Body Program is intended to make donated bodies available to the UCLA community for medical education and research.
Its director Henry Reid was arrested Saturday "for illegal activities involving the commercialization of human remains," that is, selling body parts, Levey said.
Reid is alleged to have sold the parts to Ernest Nelson, who is alleged to have then sold them to other people, who were not identified.
A second UCLA employee who has not been identified publicly has been placed on leave while the investigation goes on, Levey said.
Levey said there was no indication that the body parts had been used for any purpose other than medical research, but added he was not sure. "Part of the ongoing investigation will focus on verifying that."
Levey announced the interim appointment of Dr. J. Thomas Rosenthal to run the program "until new management is in place."
In addition, former California Gov. and Attorney General George Deukmejian will oversee an independent reorganization of the Willed Body Program, "and to provide rigorous audit and oversight to ensure this misconduct does not occur again."
And a hotline has been set up to field calls from relatives who want to find out whether their loved ones' bodies were involved, he said.
School officials got their first clue that something was amiss early last month, when the University of California's office of the president in Oakland received a letter from a lawyer representing Nelson demanding money, said Lou Marlin, outside counsel for the university.
"Mr. Nelson claimed that he had been required to return anatomical specimens to the university," Marlin said.
"That did, in fact, trigger alarm bells on behalf of the university," and led to an internal audit of the program that "raised questions as to the accuracy of documentation," Marlin added.
 Ernest Nelson allegedly acted as a middleman in the sale of body parts. | |
Law enforcement authorities were called in last Monday, said Karl Ross, acting chief of the University of California Police Department.
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Nelson said he entered UCLA's Medical Center twice a week with a saw and collected "knees, hands, torsos and other body parts needed by his corporate clients involved in private medical research."
Over the weekend, police searched Reid's house in Anaheim, taking three computers, a firearm and several boxes of documents and computer disks, Ross said. Reid, 54, was charged with grand theft. He has posted bond and been released. His next court appearance is slated for March 30.
They also searched the Alta Loma home of Nelson, 46, and took two computers, two firearms and several boxes of documents and computer disks, Ross said. Nelson, charged with receiving stolen property, has posted bond and his next court date is scheduled for May 7.
Asked about a published report that 800 bodies were involved in the alleged sales, Marlin said, "My belief is that that number is exaggerated, but we will not know until we have had the opportunity to go through the documentation."
If it turns out the body parts crossed state lines, the FBI will join the case, Ross said.
The school's Willed Body Program receives about 175 donated bodies per year. "It has always been our intent to treat these people's remains with dignity and respect," Levey said. "Their contribution is beyond measure. These donations are motivated by their desire to support students and their education and so do something positive for the future of medicine."
In addition to being used by surgeons in training, the bodies are used by "virtually every department of the UCLA Center for Health Sciences," he said.
But some relatives of people who donated their bodies to UCLA have filed a lawsuit against the school upon learning of the alleged body part sales and they are seeking class action status, The Associated Press reported
"UCLA and the Regents have known for many years that the Willed Body Program was spinning out of control," a statement from lawyers representing the families said, according to AP.
Nelson has claimed he has been procuring parts of human remains from the school for six years, reports the AP.
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Associated Press contributed to this report.
