Pate v. Sunset Funeral Home

Patrick Mihelic and James Clyde Pate were killed and their bodies burned beyond recognition in a one-car accident in Northport, Alabama. The bodies were misidentified at some stage of the ensuing investigation, either by the Alabama State Troopers, the coroner, or a driver from the State Department of Forensic Sciences. The bodies were taken to Sunset Funeral Home, Inc. for preparation for burial. Subsequently, Mihelic was entombed in Pate's mausoleum and Pate was buried in Mihelic's underground plot.

There was evidence that Earl Mitchell, general manager of Sunset Funeral Home, was alerted to…