Centre County prosecutors expect to charge Howard funeral home director after police probe
Centre County prosecutors said Friday they expect to charge the owner and director of a funeral home in Howard after state police at Rockview completed an investigation into allegations he abused a corpse.
Charges against Singer-Kader-Neff Funeral Home owner Garrett Singer were approved by Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna’s office, prosecutors said in a written statement. They are expected to be filed next week.
The statement from Cantorna’s office did not detail the allegations beyond saying they involved the abuse of a corpse, which is a misdemeanor in Pennsylvania.
It came one day after Singer and his funeral home were named as defendants in a lawsuit brought by a woman who alleged her mother’s corpse was left in the funeral home to decompose for six weeks instead of being properly cremated.
Sherry Cramer, of Pennsylvania Furnace, also alleged investigators discovered additional corpses in the funeral home that may have been improperly handled. The lawsuit did not specify the condition or number of other corpses.
The filing said the funeral home’s alleged conduct was “extreme and outrageous and went beyond all possible bounds of decency.”
“Families trust funeral homes to treat their loved ones with dignity and respect,” Cramer’s attorney Joe Sauder told the Centre Daily Times in a written statement. “The allegations in this case are deeply troubling, and our client is seeking accountability for the extreme distress and suffering caused by the defendants’ actions.”
Attorney Jim Kutz, who is defending Singer against the lawsuit, told the Centre Daily Times on Friday that some of the allegations are “not factually accurate.” He acknowledged there were delays, but said they were brought about by legal impediments and inactions.
None of the delays, Kutz said, were brought about “intentionally or willfully.” He said he will file a formal response in court with the hope of resolving of the suit.
Singer is a native of Pleasant Gap and graduated from Bellefonte Area High School in 2009, according to the funeral home’s website. He also pursued degrees at Penn State and the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science.
No disciplinary actions were found Friday afternoon for Singer’s funeral license.
This story was originally published March 14, 2025 at 2:46 PM.