- Apr 14, 2001
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Lawyer Says Mercury Behind Crematory Case
AP
RINGGOLD, Ga. (Feb. 7) - The lawyer for a former crematory operator said he believes mercury exposure led his client to leave 334 bodies to rot in piles across his property.
A prosecutor disputed the theory, saying the lawyer was trying to win parole for Ray Brent Marsh, who admitted dumping the bodies and passing off cement dust as their ashes.
"Brent has never been able to articulate a reason to himself, to me or to anybody as to why this happened," lawyer McCracken Poston said.
Poston said he believes Marsh was suffering the effects of long-term exposure to mercury vapors from a poorly built ventilation system at the Tri-State Crematory in northwest Georgia.
He said Marsh's behavior, as well as health problems suffered by his late father, crematory founder Ray Marsh, match the effects of exposure to mercury vapors caused by burning dental fillings during cremation. Many dental fillings are made of a compound that includes mercury.
The younger Marsh took over the family business in 1997. Investigators acting on a tip in February 2002 discovered a ghastly scene of bodies dumped in woods, buildings and sometimes stacked on top of each other.
Marsh is serving a 12-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to 787 counts of theft, abuse of a corpse, burial service fraud and making false statements.
A test on Marsh's hair in 2004 indicated elevated mercury, Poston said, though he acknowledged he did not have a definitive answer to the mystery.
"Is it conclusive? No," he said. "But it sure makes sense to me."
He said he has submitted material supporting his theory to the state parole board.
"I hope that the release of this information can give some comfort to those who were most deeply affected by the disaster and who have been looking for answers," Poston said.
His theory is being met with skepticism.
"I think it's to try and curry favor with the parole board and is a publicity stunt," Prosecutor Herbert Franklin said Tuesday. "If he was affected by mercury poisoning, it only affected him in what he was doing at his work. He was going to college. He was on the board of tax equalization. He was a fine, upstanding young man except for what he was doing at work."
Joe Oden of Chattanooga, Tenn., whose wife's body was found at the crematory in Noble, said he also thinks Poston is simply trying to help Marsh get paroled.
"I just don't buy it," Oden said of the theory. "I think it's hogwash."
Dr. Kris Sperry, Georgia's chief medical examiner, said the mercury poisoning theory is not scientifically well supported.
"The affidavit, if you read it carefully, uses the words 'if' and 'may' a lot in regards to exposure to mercury," said Sperry, who led the effort to identify the recovered bodies. "It doesn't meet a standard of proof. You have to have information that mercury poisoning is more likely than not the cause."
Sperry said a blood test would reveal if Marsh suffered overexposure to mercury. Poston said he is open to further testing.
AP
RINGGOLD, Ga. (Feb. 7) - The lawyer for a former crematory operator said he believes mercury exposure led his client to leave 334 bodies to rot in piles across his property.
A prosecutor disputed the theory, saying the lawyer was trying to win parole for Ray Brent Marsh, who admitted dumping the bodies and passing off cement dust as their ashes.
"Brent has never been able to articulate a reason to himself, to me or to anybody as to why this happened," lawyer McCracken Poston said.
Poston said he believes Marsh was suffering the effects of long-term exposure to mercury vapors from a poorly built ventilation system at the Tri-State Crematory in northwest Georgia.
He said Marsh's behavior, as well as health problems suffered by his late father, crematory founder Ray Marsh, match the effects of exposure to mercury vapors caused by burning dental fillings during cremation. Many dental fillings are made of a compound that includes mercury.
The younger Marsh took over the family business in 1997. Investigators acting on a tip in February 2002 discovered a ghastly scene of bodies dumped in woods, buildings and sometimes stacked on top of each other.
Marsh is serving a 12-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to 787 counts of theft, abuse of a corpse, burial service fraud and making false statements.
A test on Marsh's hair in 2004 indicated elevated mercury, Poston said, though he acknowledged he did not have a definitive answer to the mystery.
"Is it conclusive? No," he said. "But it sure makes sense to me."
He said he has submitted material supporting his theory to the state parole board.
"I hope that the release of this information can give some comfort to those who were most deeply affected by the disaster and who have been looking for answers," Poston said.
His theory is being met with skepticism.
"I think it's to try and curry favor with the parole board and is a publicity stunt," Prosecutor Herbert Franklin said Tuesday. "If he was affected by mercury poisoning, it only affected him in what he was doing at his work. He was going to college. He was on the board of tax equalization. He was a fine, upstanding young man except for what he was doing at work."
Joe Oden of Chattanooga, Tenn., whose wife's body was found at the crematory in Noble, said he also thinks Poston is simply trying to help Marsh get paroled.
"I just don't buy it," Oden said of the theory. "I think it's hogwash."
Dr. Kris Sperry, Georgia's chief medical examiner, said the mercury poisoning theory is not scientifically well supported.
"The affidavit, if you read it carefully, uses the words 'if' and 'may' a lot in regards to exposure to mercury," said Sperry, who led the effort to identify the recovered bodies. "It doesn't meet a standard of proof. You have to have information that mercury poisoning is more likely than not the cause."
Sperry said a blood test would reveal if Marsh suffered overexposure to mercury. Poston said he is open to further testing.
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