Colorado judge rejects plea deal for funeral director who acknowledged abusing 191 corpses

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado judge on Friday rejected a plea agreement for a funeral home owner who acknowledged abusing 191 corpses, many of which languished in a room-temperature building for years as the owner and his wife maintained a lavish lifestyle.

The rare decision to reject the agreement came after families of the dead who were given fake ashes asked for a more severe punishment for Jon Hallford, who owned and operated Return to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado Springs with his wife, Carie.