Bourbon funeral home faces lawsuit over handling of decedent, alleged $150k theft

BOURBON, Ind.-- Staff at the Deaton-Clemens Funeral Home in Bourbon are now defendants in a lawsuit with two major allegations. The first is that a deceased loved one's body was improperly cared for, and the other is that a funeral home employee coerced the plaintiff into letting her control, and ultimately steal, her financial assets.   

The Deaton-Clemens Funeral Home is located on Bourbon's main stretch, run by Terry and Julie Clemens. Terry is the vice president of Bourbon's Town Council.

Many locals told ABC57's Annie Kate that the Clemenses are heavily involved, trusted pillars of the community, and they couldn't believe the accusations in the lawsuit filed in September 2025.

The plaintiff, Judy Bailey, lost her brother, William Bailey, in July 2024.

The first part of her lawsuit deals with how William's body was handled after she reached out for services. She says her brother's body was picked up and transported in the bed of a pickup truck and not taken immediately to the funeral home. Then, "On the day of the funeral, no grave had been prepared for burial."

She alleges his body wasn't properly stored and embalmed, because at the funeral, his condition was visibly poor, with mucus around his nose and hair clippings on his chest. 

Judy never saw her brother's casket lowered into the ground, so to this day, she worries he wasn't properly buried and wants an answer.

In their response to Judy's lawsuit, the Deaton-Clemens Funeral Home maintains that William's body was cared for. They say his body was transported in a retrofitted minivan, not the bed of a pickup truck. They say, "Mr. Bailey's body was cared for and stored in a professional manner consistent with industry standards and regulations." 

They also deny any improper storage or embalming practices, and say he was properly buried at the New Oak Cemetery in Plymouth the same day as the funeral.

ABC57's Annie Kate visited New Oak Cemetery to find out personally. Workers found his name in their records, confirming he had a plot since 2023, and he was buried on Aug. 1, 2024. Next, workers took her to his listed grave site, where there was a Bailey family headstone. To prove there is a vault containing a casket in the ground in William's spot, one worker pushed a metal probe into the earth, hitting a hard surface they say is the vault.

Judy and her representation at Anderson, Agostino & Keller in South Bend declined to speak with ABC57 for this story. However, the care and keeping of William is only part of Judy's lawsuit.

It goes on to say that in the weeks after William's funeral, a Deaton-Clemens employee, Kristin Harp, befriended Judy and arranged for the two to meet up and discuss Judy's pre-need funeral arrangements. That's when Judy believes she was first drugged with Benadryl by Harp. Judy claims she suffered strokes, a seizure, and a heart attack within days, all apparently consistent with Benadryl poisoning. 

During this time-- September and October 2024-- Bailey made Harp her power of attorney, sole beneficiary to her will, grantee of a life estate, and member of a joint bank account. All this was the product of undue influence, the lawsuit states. 

Harp allegedly asked Judy for an $8,000 loan in December 2024, which she agreed to if she was repaid, but more than $150,000 was withdrawn from their joint bank account, and no repayments were ever made. That money was allegedly used to pay off the funeral home's debt and more.

The staff at Deaton-Clemens Funeral Home denies all allegations. 

Harp "denies the friendship was anything other than a mutual relationship that plaintiff initiated and sought out or that it was inappropriate," and denies all allegations of drugging or poisoning Judy, saying Judy voluntarily made her power of attorney. 

They categorically deny all accusations related to the withdrawal of money from Judy's bank account. 

ABC57's Annie Kate reached out to the defendants in this case. The Deaton-Clemens Funeral Home, Kristin Harp, and their attorney all declined to comment for this story. Judy and her attorney also declined to comment. 

Indiana MyCase does not show any court proceedings scheduled for this case at this time.