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Poway Mortuary Faces License Revocation for Unlicensed Embalmings

Owner, former managing funeral director also facing disciplinary action by regulators

SACRAMENTO — The California Department of Consumer Affairs is seeking to revoke the licenses of a Poway funeral home, its owner and former managing funeral director after an investigation revealed that a number of unlicensed embalmings had been conducted at the business.

An Accusation filed last month against the Poway Bernardo Mortuary says mortuary staff, which tipped off DCA's Cemetery and Funeral Bureau about the business' illegal activities, alleges forty or more unlicensed embalmings were performed at Poway-Bernardo under the direction of Rick Sadler, the mortuary's managing funeral director at the time.

The man who allegedly performed the embalmings, who is a licensed embalmer in New York state but not California, at first denied he was working at Poway-Bernardo. He later admitted to a Bureau investigator that he had performed two embalmings there, the accusation says.

"Poway-Bernardo shows an appalling disregard for California's rules and regulations, which are designed to protect consumers," said Sherrie Moffet-Bell, Chief of the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau.

Moffet-Bell noted that Poway-Bernardo’s owner, Carl Comer, and Mr. Sadler have a history of disregarding California law and were cited in a case involving unlicensed activity just four years ago.

In that case, Mr. Comer and Mr. Sadler were operating a separate, unlicensed funeral establishment named San Diego Mortuary Services under the same roof as the Poway-Bernardo Mortuary. Fines against both men and the business totaled $8,008 in that case.

Moreover, a Funeral Establishment license held by Mr. Sadler for an Alameda, CA mortuary was revoked in 1987. His Embalmer's license was also suspended and later cancelled as a result of that case. The state did not issue separate Funeral Director licenses at the time.

In the current case, Mr. Comer and Mr. Sadler have requested a hearing on the Accusation before an Adminstrative Law Judge. No date for that proceeding has been set.

In addition to asking for the revocation or suspension of their licenses, the Bureau is also asking to be reimbursed the cost of its investigation, which has not yet been determined.

DCA's Cemetery and Funeral Bureau licenses and regulates the California funeral and cemetery industries. It also investigates complaints against funeral homes, crematories, state-licensed cemeteries and individual licensees. For more information, visit www.cfb.ca.gov.

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