Serpentfoot has failed in her attempts to have a veteran buried according to her organization’s beliefs — which include dismembering the body, keeping the bones for study and art, and using other parts to feed animals, Floyd County Superior Court records state. The president of Word Problems and Problem Solvers, Cures — a religious organization based on her “Bad News Gospel” — has been in a legal battle with Floyd Medical Center for two months over the burial rites of Leevenous J. Dempsey, who died April 14. Court records state Serpentfoot wanted Dempsey, who she called her de facto husband and vice president of her group, to have a “sky funeral,” which would include dissecting his body, burying portions of it and leaving other parts out for animals to eat. Jackie Newby, risk manager for Floyd Healthcare Management, opposed Serpentfoot’s request and petitioned Floyd County Probate Court on April 17 to grant Floyd Medical Center the right to dispose of the body. The petition rose to Superior Court, where Newby prevailed Monday. Dempsey, 86, was buried Tuesday morning at Georgia National Cemetery in Canton with military rites. “He wanted an earth burial, a sky burial and a sea burial,” Serpentfoot said Tuesday, vowing to appeal. Serpentfoot is no stranger to controversy and has been willing to use unorthodox methods to uphold her beliefs. She once squatted on The Forum property before its construction and disrobed in a Floyd County Commission meeting. Dempsey entered the hospital March 23, Serpentfoot said. Court records state he died April 14. Serpentfoot told Newby shortly after his death that she wanted custody of the body. She presented Newby a contract between Dempsey and Word Problems and Problem Solvers, Cures, in which Dempsey pays for his anticipated funeral with a house trailer and its contents. Dempsey also gave Serpentfoot health care power of attorney, she said. “As pre-payment in full for a sky funeral, or Heaven and Earth recycling of flesh and bones, in the Cycle of Life, and all 4 elements, burial services under the supervision of Ms. Serpentfoot …” the contract reads. Court records state Serpentfoot intended to “dismember the body, extract and retain the bones for study and ‘art’ purposes, place the deboned flesh in the open to feed animals and fertilize plants and save a portion of the remains to deposit at sea.” Newby argued in her April 17 filing that Serpentfoot’s health care power of attorney over Dempsey ceased upon his death. Additionally, Serpentfoot is not a licensed funeral director in Georgia and cannot dispose of his body. An affidavit by Newby states she found no relative of Dempsey’s willing to bury him, and added that she would take responsibility for disposing of his remains. Contacted Tuesday, Newby declined to comment. Probate Court Judge Steven Burkhalter ruled June 6 that no person qualified under the law to dispose of Dempsey’s body, and that Newby was “the more fit and appropriate person” to deal with his remains. “While the Court acknowledges the relationship Ms. Serpentfoot had with Mr. Dempsey, at the same time the Court is concerned that the method of disposal contemplated by Ms. Serpentfoot is against the interests of the public and public health,” Burkhalter states. Serpentfoot appealed to Superior Court, which sided Monday with Newby. Dempsey, who served in the Army from April 1945 to December 1946, was buried Tuesday with military rites. Serpentfoot learned about the burial afterward. She did not attend. “If they can burn a body to ashes, why can’t that body be fed to a bird?” she asked.

COLUMBUS, Ga. (AP) — A rapid that has gained a notorious reputation as part of a new whitewater course on the Chattahoochee River has been reopened after dozens of rafters were dumped into the rushing water during its first week. The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reports that at least 10 of 17 large rafts flipped on the Cut Bait rapid shortly after the course opened in May. More than 70 of the first rafters who traversed the rapid were dumped into the river that separates Georgia and Alabama in the Columbus area. No injuries were reported, but the rapid was off-limits to paying customers for a couple weeks after as guides went through additional training. Whitewater Express owner Dan Gilbert says the additional training has led to a much higher success rate through the rapid.