Detroit Man Gets Probation After Stealing Dad's Body

He had hoped 93-year-old would return to life
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 24, 2013 2:18 PM CDT
Detroit Man Gets Probation After Stealing Dad's Body
This file booking photo provided by the Detroit Police Department shows Vincent Bright.   (Uncredited)

A man who stole his father's body from a Detroit cemetery was placed on probation today and ordered to take mental health medication or face jail. Vincent Bright avoided a prison sentence under a deal with the Wayne County prosecutor's office. He pleaded guilty in August to disinterment of a body. Bright "absolutely" must continue getting mental health care, said Wayne County Judge James Chylinski. "If you don't do that, I've got to lock you up," the judge said.

In January, the body of 93-year-old Clarence Bright disappeared from Gethsemane Cemetery, shortly after his funeral but before the casket could be buried. Family members led police to the body in a freezer in Vincent Bright's Detroit home. Bright, 49, was arrested when police found him in a van with an empty casket in the back. Police said Bright was religious and had hoped his father would come back to life. He was initially found mentally unfit to face the charges, but his mental health improved after treatment in state hospitals. (More Vincent Bright stories.)

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