Family of woman who died in Columbia Belk bathroom files lawsuit against store
The family of a woman whose body was not found for four days after she died in a department store bathroom have filed a lawsuit against Belk.
Attorneys for the family of Bessie Durham, a custodian whose body was found in a bathroom at the Belk at Columbiana Centre in September of last year, announced the lawsuit Tuesday morning. The lawsuit was filed on the one-year anniversary of when Durham’s body was found.
Authorities believe the 63-year-old Durham suffered a medical emergency and died inside a locked bathroom stall at the store while she was cleaning. She went undiscovered over the weekend until staff found her the following Monday.
Attorneys Chris Hart, Seth Rose and Justin Bamberg say Belk neglected to inspect its bathrooms for days, leaving Durham’s remains unrecovered while her family didn’t know where she was or what had happened to her.
Because Durham’s body was left alone for so long, the suit alleges Durham’s family could smell her body inside the casket at the funeral due to advanced decomposition. The press release quotes one of Durham’s relatives as saying, “We were not able to properly bury our loved one because Belk was too busy making money. We want to see changes made so that no other family has to suffer like we have.”
“This is an incredibly tragic situation that should never have happened,” said Hart, the lead attorney on the case, in a press release announcing the lawsuit. “Our client’s loved one was a loyal and dedicated worker and Belk’s gross negligence has etched the most indelible horror on the family.”
The lawsuit seeks damages for the family’s pain and suffering, as well as other costs incurred by the family.
“We hope that this lawsuit serves as a wake-up call to Belk and other corporations, that they have a moral and legal obligation to treat workers and their families with dignity and respect,” Hart said.
