Leno v. St. Joseph Hospital

Defendant, St. Joseph Hospital, appeals directly to this court (Rule 302(a)) from the judgment of the circuit court of Cook County which held unconstitutional “An Act in relation to autopsy of dead bodies” (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1971, ch. 91, pars. 18.11 through 18.15) and awarded damages to plaintiff Sam Leno in the amount of $1,000.

Plaintiffs Sam Leno and Ralph Leno filed this action in the circuit court of Cook County, alleging that defendant, without proper authorization, had performed an autopsy on the body of their brother, Peter Leno, who had been confined to the hospital for several weeks…