HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Kim Garner said when she saw the news on Friday about a Houston funeral home raided by police, she was surprised.
Garner said her dad died in 2020 from medical complications and the facility where he died ended up sending his body to A Community Funeral Home.
About a dozen officers served a search warrant related to identity theft at A Community Funeral Home on Friday, according to the Houston Police Department.
“I shrieked, actually woke up the boys early on Saturday,” Kim Garner said.
13 Investigates has learned the funeral home was put on probation with the county in 2020, seven months after it was awarded a $716,000 contract in 2019 to provide mortuary services as part of Harris County’s Bereavement Services.
Unique Green, the owner of A Community Funeral Home, was not initially awarded the contract, but went before Harris County commissioners in October 2019 to plead her case.
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After about 20 minutes of discussion, the county decided during that meeting to split its contract for mortuary services between Green and another funeral home that has been working with the county for more than a decade.
Now, 13 Investigates has obtained a document outlining issues the county had with Green less than a year after she was awarded the contract.
In a letter sent to Green in May 2020, the county’s interim director of community services said he learned that A Community Funeral Home was not meeting the county’s expectations.
The director said he asked staff to look into those concerns and was “surprised” to learn there was already a file of “well-documented” complaints about the services the funeral home is contracted to provide the county.
“We hold a high standard to these services and require of our vendors the same. This is especially true when dealing with families as they grieve,” the county wrote in a letter to Green in 2020. “The seriousness and volume of complaints that do not match our values or our expectations are appalling to be frank. The laundry list of complaints below show a lack of professionalism, cooperation, and above all, compassion for those in their time of need.”
The letter the county sent in 2020 outlines more than 20 bullet points under “complaints and issues.”
The county and complaints allege problems including excessive costs and improper billing, transporting bodies in U-Hauls, unprofessional behavior and taking a body to the wrong cemetery.
The letter showed at least three people reported to the county that bodies were being held “hostage.”
Although the Garner family was not among those listed in the county’s letter, they said their experience with Green was unprofessional.
The Garner family said after their dad was in Green’s care, they wanted their father transferred to a private doctor for an autopsy. But, they said in order to do that Green asked them to Venmo her almost $600.
They said Green later dropped the price to $250, and transactions the family shared with 13 Investigates showed they paid Green.
“I thought that was very unprofessional and cold, but she acted like she was doing this a big favor, so she acted like she felt sorry for our story and realized it was a mistake and she’s going to give me half off,” Kim said.
The Garners said Green also offered them a discount for cremation services, but they declined.
They said it was a decision they are grateful they made after Houston police carried boxes of cremains out of the funeral home on Friday during its raid.
“I just felt bad for the people who couldn’t dodge what we dodged. I just felt bad for them,” Jeff Garner said.
Green was detained by police on Friday, but later released without charges.
HPD said officers were looking for financial records because they said they’ve gotten a number of calls from people whose loved ones used the funeral home for their services.
13 Investigates tried to reach Green today and after a brief conversation with someone about what we were calling about, they hung up.
The county terminated its contract in 2020. We’ve requested but are still waiting to hear back on how much Green and her funeral home were paid by the county.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Harris County Bereavement Services and Cemetery Program said it is committed to providing dignified and respectful burials and cremations for everyone under its care.
“We are aware of past vendors referenced in recent news coverage. We cannot comment on ongoing law enforcement matters, our priority continues to be ensuring the highest level of care, accountability and dignity for our decedents and their families,” the county said in a statement.
Contact 13 Investigates
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