A bill has been filed in the Missouri General Assembly that proposes to divide the State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors membership evenly between the public and industry representatives. That Board currently consists of 5 industry members and 1 public member. The bill sponsor, Representative Joe Don McGaugh, is from a district that includes
fraud
Facing 14 Years’ of Hard Time: One Missouri Funeral Director’s Failure to Deposit Preneed Funds
By Bill Stalter on
The Missouri Iron County Mountain Echo ran the following story on August 15th:
A former Ironton Funeral Home Director has pleaded guilty to two counts of stealing in Iron County Circuit Court. The charges stem from the sale of pre-need funeral plans. George Treaster of Ironton entered a plea of guilty to two…
Chasing Preneed’s Bad Apples
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Associations, Exams/audits
In September of last year, the Columbus Dispatch published a story critical of the Ohio State Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers. Examining the Board’s efforts to address preneed fraud, the story reported that prosecutions of funeral directors were more the result of consumer complaints than Board inspections. That must have struck a nerve…
The Wulf Conviction: Defining a New Fiduciary Standard for Fund Managers?
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Master Trusts, Preneed
The jury did not buy the Wulf defense, and now the former NPS fund manager faces a much, much longer prison term than Doug Cassity. To get a better understanding of the positions taken by the prosecution and the defense, we will seek briefs and jury instructions. However, the US Attorney’s press release gives some…
Oak Ridge Cemetery: Netting to Make Ends Meet
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Cemeteries
In relation to many of its peers, Springfield’s Oak Ridge Cemetery could be labeled progressive. Oak Ridge maintains both an endowed care trust and a preneed trust. In contrast, a substantial number of the country’s cemeteries have neither. The fact that Oak Ridge Cemetery is owned and operated by the City of Springfield, Illinois, makes…
Taxes and the Bounty Hunter
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Preneed, Preneed Tax
When news of the indictment of 6 National Prearranged Service officers was reported last November, many newspapers picked up the AP version that included a quote from the Internal Revenue Service criminal investigator. The fact is that the Federal investigation of NPS involves investigators from the IRS, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Delegating Preneed Prosecution
By Bill Stalter on
Maybe it’s a response to shrinking state budgets, or the fact that the tracking of preneed funds is becoming more effective, but state and local prosecutors are assuming an expanding role in the enforcement of preneed laws.
While a recent report released by the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors reflects a drop…
The Smart Deal: Federal time in the offing
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Cemeteries
In the end, Clayton will likely spend many of his final days in a federal penitentiary. The Memphis Commercial Appeal outlines the plea bargain to be entered by Clayton Smart to conclude criminal investigations in Tennessee, Oklahoma and Michigan.
Comments made to the Commercial Appeal story express outrage with the prosecutors and the plea bargain.
Succession Planning Gone Bad
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Funeral
At age 78, Darrell Bennett should be spending his days on a Florida golf course. Instead, he is back in Michigan trying to salvage his life’s work. Like so many funeral home owners, Mr. Bennett handed over the keys to someone he trusted and took back a note for the purchase price. According to stories…
Serving Time in Kansas: Fairlawn Burial Park
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Cemeteries, Preneed
Families and funeral homes harmed by NPS will hope that company’s owners and officers have to face a judge like the Honorable Richard Rome.
The Hutchinson News reported that District Judge Richard Rome rejected a plea bargain for probation, and sentenced Fairlawn Burial Park’s owner to almost 5 years in prison. A Kansas Secretary of…