Police: Corpse crashes through van window, left on Texas road

DENTON, TX -- Police believe a cadaver found along a North Texas road was being transported to Denver for medical research but fell out of a vehicle.

A Denton police officer early Tuesday discovered the body of 79-year-old Nell Joseph covered in medical grade ice and in a black body bag.

Officials say Joseph had lung disease when she died in Fort Worth on Thanksgiving Day. Her family decided to donate her body to Science Care so the organization could study chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The driver told authorities he didn't realize the body had crashed through the back window of the van.

A spokeswoman for Science Care says a window seal on the van may have failed. The company has stopped using the transportation firm amid a review of the incident.