Attorney general announces suspension of license for Jeffersonville funeral home

Aug. 4—JEFFERSONVILLE — Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita's request to suspend the funeral home license of Randy Lankford and Lankford Funeral Home and Family Center was approved by a state board Thursday.

The suspension comes after police found last month 31 unrefrigerated corpses in various stages of decomposition and 17 cremated remains in the Jeffersonville funeral home. Civil cases have been filed against Lankford, though he hadn't been charged criminally as of Thursday afternoon.

Records provided by Rokita's office show the attorney general filed for emergency license suspensions on July 26. According to Rokita's office, Lankford agreed last week to surrender licenses for himself and the funeral home. On Thursday, the State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service approved the suspensions.

"Our office puts a high priority on protecting Hoosiers from harmful business practices and professional malpractice," Rokita said in a statement. "In this case, our Licensing Enforcement team acted swiftly to take the appropriate actions."

Rokita said the unsanitary conditions at the funeral home, located at 3106 Middle Road, posed "a clear and immediate threat to public health and safety."

"Grieving families must be able to trust that their loved ones' remains will be respectfully and properly handled," Rokita said. "We are committed to making sure that anyone entrusted with a professional license issued by the state is meeting the required standards."

Rokita said his office is continuing to investigate the matter and asked anyone with information to call the Licensing Enforcement Section at 1-800-382-5516.