Lee Harvey Oswald casket must go back to family.

Original pine bluff casket that was used to bury Lee Harvey Oswald

A judge in Tarrant County, Texas, has ruled that the original Lee Harvey Oswald casket must be returned to the Oswald family.

In 1981, Oswald’s body was exhumed in order to silence conspiracy theorists who did not believe he had been buried. Due to deterioration, the original casket was replaced when the remains were reburied. Since then, the casket has remained at the Fort Worth, Texas Baumgardner Funeral Home. The Oswald family was unaware that the Lee Harvey Oswald casket still existed until Allen S. Baumgarner, Sr. attempted to sell it for more than $87,000.

In addition to ordering the first coffin returned to Robert Oswald, Judge Cosby ordered Mr. Baumgardner and the funeral home to pay Mr. Oswald an amount equal to the sale price — $87,468 — in damages. The funeral home was also ordered to pay $10,771 in storage fees to the auction house, and $611 in travel expenses as well as any additional storage fees at the rate of $215 a month.
“The judge did not think much of their case,” said Robert Oswald’s lawyer, Gant Grimes of Wichita Falls, describing his client as “pleased with the outcome.” Robert Oswald, now 80, will probably have the coffin destroyed “as soon as possible,” Mr. Grimes said.
Read the full story: Oswald’s Coffin Belongs to His Brother, Not Funeral Home, a Judge Rules

Oswald’s brother, Robert, brought the suit in 2010 when he discovered the sale. The sale was halted, and since then, the casket has remained in storage at the auction house. The family says that the casket will now be destroyed.