Schmidt v. Schmidt

The plaintiff herein is a widow seeking the return of her husband’s ashes and requesting damages for the wrongful retention of them by her brother-in-law.

The litigation came about by the following facts: The plaintiff, Gertrude Schmidt, was married to one Alfred Schmidt on April 6, 1950. Alfred died on September 5, 1950, while at the home of his mother, at which residence the defendant brother-in-law also lived. Although the plaintiff paid for the funeral expenses of her husband, the arrangements were made by his mother and the defendant brother. These arrangements included cremation, to…