Man wants shared custody of other man's leg

Three years ago, John Wood's leg was amputated after it was injured in a plane crash. He kept the leg and dried it so it could be someday buried with him. Eventually the limb ended up in a barbecue smoker in a storage facility. After Wood stopped paying rent on the storage space, the items were sold off. Shannon Whisnant of Maiden, North Carolina bought the smoker and, unknowingly, the desiccated limb. This week, Wood is coming to Maiden to pick up the leg but Whisnant wants to keep it. From McClatchy Newspapers:

Wood said he was livid when he got the request from Whisnant.

"He's making a freak show out of it," Wood said. "He wants to go on 'The Tonight Show' and he wants to sell it to the National Enquirer and call Ripley's Believe It Or Not. He wants to put money in his pocket with this thing."

After meeting with a lawyer this weekend, Whisnant decided his best move was to convince Wood to share custody.

Link (Thanks, Carlo Longino!)

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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the Other michael

Eventually the limb ended up in a barbecue smoker in a storage facility.

Why, exactly, are there OTHER words the the article containing this sentence?
vrempire

That really gross..how can a limb like that which can be considered a fossil becomes something of an issue. Just give it back to the owner of the limb, will ya?
Fistynuts

Story summary!

Wood: Can I have my leg back?
Whisnant: Hop it!
Thingamadad

“After meeting with a lawyer this weekend, Whisnant decided his best move was to convince Wood to share custody [because, legally, he didn't have a leg to stand on].”
Pat Race

Gross. All the BBQ Smoked food is going to have natural leg flavoring.
Robotech_Master

Isn’t there some kind of law against the sale or possession of human remains?
Diatryma

That’s a good point, Robotech. Possession is fine (my aunt keeps some relatives on the closet shelf) but it’s illegal to sell organs, which I have seen interpreted to include human hair. I’m not sure how this intersects with Locks of Love and being paid for plasma, but there might be a case there.