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Photo: Martin Möller / Funke Photo Services / IMAGO
For weeks his family believed that he was no longer alive: Tyler Chase from the US state of Oregon was wrongly declared dead last year. The first time he apparently became suspicious was when he was standing in a supermarket and his "Benefit Card" - a prepaid card on which social benefits are booked - wasn't working. According to the New York Times, he then contacted the authorities and learned that a death certificate had even been issued in his name.
According to the report, Chase struggled with drug problems for years, had little contact with his family and became a delinquent. In October 2023, when he learned of his supposed death, he completed an addiction recovery program and lived in transitional housing. He had been sober for seven months and was looking for work. "Obviously you can no longer apply if you're dead," the 22-year-old told the newspaper.
Confusion with another resident
And it got worse: According to the report, his family was sent an urn that supposedly contained his ashes. According to the New York Times, his cousin said the family was distraught but not surprised when they learned of his supposed death. She last saw him at his mother's funeral in 2020 and then lost contact. "The next thing I hear about him is he died of a drug overdose," she said. When she got the call in December that he was still alive, she initially thought they were trying to play a prank on her.
How could it come to this? Chase's wallet was found on another resident of the property who had died of an overdose - presumably because he had stolen it. The mix-up arose because the dead man had the wallet and a temporary driver's license with him, Fox News reported in January, citing the authorities.
Measures should now be taken to ensure that such mistakes are not repeated. Among other things, fingerprints should be taken from dead people in forensic medicine in order to identify them reliably.
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