TOLEDO, Ohio -
A mother buried her daughter, and now she is seeking justice. Brenda Shuler Cameron died earlier this month. Her family says she was sexually assaulted by an employee at H. H. Birkenkamp Funeral Home, and they want to make sure it never happens again.
Brenda's family stood outside the funeral home Monday protesting, in effort to close the home's doors for good.
"They abused my dead daughter's corpse," says Brenda's mother, Ann Lamprecht. "I can't take anymore heartache. I can't take it anymore."
Ann's final goodbye to her 51-year-old daughter was made even more devastating.
"I just buried my daughter, so I'm more hurt than I am angry. I just came form the cemetery, and it is hard to see your baby laying in the ground out there, when you know somebody has molested her," she says.
Shortly after Brenda passed away, an employee from H. H. Birkenkamp informed the family she was fondled by an employee.
"I'm having nightmares about it now," Ann says. "I can't imagine somebody touching my daughter."
The family says the funeral home offered them a deal if they didn't report the incident to police.
It didn't work. Toledo police arrested 57-year-old Larry Clement last week. He's being charged with abusing a corpse, a fifth degree felony.
Brenda's family is doing everything they can to prevent an incident from happening again. They want H. H. Birkenkamp to close its doors for good.
"I want Birkencamp out of business," Ann says. "This has happened before, and it continues to happen, unless people do something about it. We have to inform the public so that the public knows what is going on."
Clement posted bond, and his case is being handed over to the grand jury.
In a statement to 13abc, a spokesperson for the H. H. Birkenkamp says, "We deeply regret that the circumstances are causing this family anxiety and stress. We train our staff and expect our staff to adhere to a very high standard. Occasionally, something happens, and when it does, our go to position is to contact the family and disclose what happens, and we did that here."
The funeral home also says Clement has been fired.
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