By
Updated on: August 6, 2026 / 10:12 PM CDT
/ CBS Chicago
Add CBS News on Google
An investigation was underway at a Far South Side funeral home after more than 50 decomposing bodies were found in the facility.Its funeral director's license was suspended when state regulators found decomposing bodies were being kept in "deplorable conditions" that included rodent and maggot infestations.Chicago police were seen going in and out of South Chicago Chapel, at the corner of 95th Street and Exchange Avenue, on Thursday evening.A Chicago Police Department spokesperson referred questions to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office, which confirmed it was notified by city and state officials about bodies improperly stored at the funeral home. Investigators and forensic pathologists who went to the facility "found more than 50 decedents in various states of decomposition at this time."The medical examiner's office said investigators were still assessing the conditions of the bodies and searching for documents to identify them, including death certificates, a process that could take several days.According to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation records, the state suspended the license of funeral director Johanna Morgan due to a finding that the facility's "continued practice is a danger to the public safety, interest and welfare."Records show Morgan had been "allowing multiple decedents to be kept in an unrefrigerated area with deplorable conditions including rodent infestation, causing decomposition and maggot infestation of the bodies."
