John Shoupy

The accident investigations unit of the police department were conducting an investigation of the crash in which they knew that the victim was Dexter Wade. And the coroner's office knew that it had the body of Dexter Wade.

The accident investigations unit of the police department were conducting an investigation of the crash in which they knew that the victim was Dexter Wade. And the coroner's office knew that it had the body of Dexter Wade.

When a coroner's office, any type of morgue anywhere in America, has a body, that institution cannot hold onto the body indefinitely. And every jurisdiction has different procedures about how to handle that situation. In Hines County, Mississippi, their procedure was

When a coroner's office, any type of morgue anywhere in America, has a body, that institution cannot hold onto the body indefinitely. And every jurisdiction has different procedures about how to handle that situation. In Hines County, Mississippi, their procedure was

If a certain amount of time has passed in which the person has not been claimed by next of kin, the coroner's office can apply to the county to have that person buried in a pauper's field. The pauper's field in Hinds County is in a series of plots of open land, not particularly well-maintained behind a wing of the county jail.

If a certain amount of time has passed in which the person has not been claimed by next of kin, the coroner's office can apply to the county to have that person buried in a pauper's field. The pauper's field in Hinds County is in a series of plots of open land, not particularly well-maintained behind a wing of the county jail.

And over the years, decades, hundreds of unclaimed people have been placed in that potter's field. And in these paupers' burials, an inmate from the county jail digs the grave, and the body's placed in there with a number.

And over the years, decades, hundreds of unclaimed people have been placed in that potter's field. And in these paupers' burials, an inmate from the county jail digs the grave, and the body's placed in there with a number.

And so we show up there together in one car, and a sheriff's deputy and two inmates came show up in a pickup, and they tell us to follow them. Betterstein's behind the wheel, so we drive down. We follow them down this, like, bouncy dirt road behind the jail. And the whole time that we're driving, Betterstein and her sister are talking about how strange it is. Like, where are we going?

And so we show up there together in one car, and a sheriff's deputy and two inmates came show up in a pickup, and they tell us to follow them. Betterstein's behind the wheel, so we drive down. We follow them down this, like, bouncy dirt road behind the jail. And the whole time that we're driving, Betterstein and her sister are talking about how strange it is. Like, where are we going?

This feels surreal. It was way out in the middle of nowhere with no real sign of any respect for the dead. And it's very nondescript, the potter's field. It's a patch of grass surrounded by trees, and there's some crude signs affixed to metal posts in rows. And the deputy sheriff pointed her to Dexter's grave.

This feels surreal. It was way out in the middle of nowhere with no real sign of any respect for the dead. And it's very nondescript, the potter's field. It's a patch of grass surrounded by trees, and there's some crude signs affixed to metal posts in rows. And the deputy sheriff pointed her to Dexter's grave.

And I remember Betterstein approaching that and kind of saying, is that it?

And I remember Betterstein approaching that and kind of saying, is that it?

After Betterstein visited the grave, she then began work on having him exhumed so that he could get a proper burial and funeral. In order to do that, she had to get permission from the county to show up and have a funeral director on hand and have county crews exhume the body. So she arranged for all that.

After Betterstein visited the grave, she then began work on having him exhumed so that he could get a proper burial and funeral. In order to do that, she had to get permission from the county to show up and have a funeral director on hand and have county crews exhume the body. So she arranged for all that.

She had a lawyer representing her who helped get the red tape tied up and showed up, was told to show up one morning for the exhumation. And I went with her to that as well. So I rode with her and along the way, we started to get word that the body had already been exhumed. And sure enough, when we got there, the funeral director was there

She had a lawyer representing her who helped get the red tape tied up and showed up, was told to show up one morning for the exhumation. And I went with her to that as well. So I rode with her and along the way, we started to get word that the body had already been exhumed. And sure enough, when we got there, the funeral director was there

And Dexter's body had already apparently been put in the back of a county coroner's truck. So for Betterstein, that was just another insult and injury to this process.

And Dexter's body had already apparently been put in the back of a county coroner's truck. So for Betterstein, that was just another insult and injury to this process.