Owner Scherrie McLin’s funeral director’s license was also suspended after the board ruled she and the funeral home, at 2801 N. Gettysburg Ave., violated nine state laws and administrative codes.
Among the violations, McLin and the funeral home are accused of:
- Permitting an unlicensed employee to advertise and promote himself in the community and online as a licensed funeral director and embalmer.
- Failing to return an overpayment of more than $6,000 to a consumer.
- Not permitting the inspector entry to the funeral home for annual inspection and failing to provide documents and/or files to the inspector.
- Failure to pick up a body from the coroner's office for a period between two to four weeks on two occasions.
- Failure to coordinate and conduct funeral services and arrangements in a proper manner, in at least one instance contributing to the deceased being buried in the wrong grave.
“We expect the McLin Funeral Home to comply with the State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Director’s order,” said Lisa Peterson Hackley, communications director for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
“If they do not comply, the Attorney General’s Office will take the appropriate legal action necessary to enforce the board’s order.”
Hackley also said that the Attorney General’s office cannot “bring criminal charges, only a county prosecutor can.”
The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
McLin has within 30 days of March 22 to request a hearing with the board.
Anne Frayne, the attorney representing McLin, did not return a phone call placed to her law firm Wednesday.
Scherrie McLin is the sister of former Dayton Mayor Rhine McLin, who is not involved in the funeral home.
The state’s order comes after Valita Jordan of Dayton filed a civil lawsuit in January against Scherrie McLin.
Jordan’s attorney, Mary K.C. Soter, claims that McLin mismanaged the November funeral of Jordan’s father.
The lawsuit also claimed that the funeral home’s articles of incorporation filed with the Secretary of State’s office had been canceled in 2009.
The Department of Taxation requested that the articles of incorporation be canceled due to the fact that Mclin failed to file her tax returns.
The state, citing confidentiality laws, has not disclosed how much McLin owed.
In February, the Dayton Daily News reported that Scherrie McLin owed Montgomery County more than $26,600 in delinquent property taxes, which made the property where the funeral home is located tax lien eligible.
This means the county could foreclose on the property to sell it or it could be sold at auction.
In addition to the tax woes, McLin was also accused of mishandling a Jan. 22 burial at Greencastle Cemetery on Nicholas Road.
Loretta Goldsmith of Dayton claimed the funeral home ignored her mother’s prearranged funeral requests to be buried next to her mother’s late husband.
Instead, Goldsmith’s mother was buried in another grave site.
“I seldom hear of a funeral home’s license being revoked. ... It’s extremely rare,” said Steve Gehlert, executive director of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association in Columbus, which represents approximately 900 funeral directors across the state.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2414 or kwynn@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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