Tenn. court rules against ex-crematory owner

NASHVILLE, Tenn - The Tennessee Supreme Court has upheld a jury verdict against Ray Brent Marsh, the former operator of a crematory in Georgia where hundreds of bodies that had been sent for cremation were found.

In 2002, investigators found heaps of decaying bodies in storage buildings, burial vaults and pits at the Tri-State Crematory in Noble, Ga. Authorities said Marsh gave relatives cement dust instead of the ashes of their loved ones.

According to court records, Marsh pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

On Friday, the high court upheld a verdict by a jury to award a total of $750,000 to the parents of a man from Tennessee for intentional infliction of emotional distress after his body was sent to the crematory.