he donated his body to science? >> i didn't think all of a sudden's tom's head, we'll sell his arm here we'll sell his skin here thanks for joining us i'm joie chen. it is the last gift any of us gan give and one of the most meaningful. thousands donate their body to science each year hoping their sacrifice will serve the greatest cause of medical research. the great intentions resulted in the rise of unintended lucrative and largely unregulated industry. for-profit body brokers with some bodies under investigation by the fbi and families in several states fearing the worst outcomes of loved ones last wishes. lori jane gliha investigates. >> he always wanted to make sure that his complete body was cremated, and that i would get the complete ashes back and i have absolutely no faith in that now. >> reporter: by the time linda hayes lost her husband tom, he had two kidney transplants and received a new pancreas. >> reporter: how old was he? >> he was 56 when he died. >> reporter: type 1 diabetes got the best of him. he hoped medical student could learn were his illness when he was gone. >> he said when he died he wanted to donate his body to science. because of his health issues he's gone through this this and this they could learn a lot from his body. >> lindaedda donated tom's body. it is a way for families to assist medical research and avoid cremation fees. unbeknownst to linda, her husband's body was about to become a lucrative industry the trade in cadaver parts, a single body can bring in as much as $10,000. linda eventually received tom's ashes in a modest wooden box. what specifically did you think would happen when he donated his body to science? >> i thought that after he was picked up they would take him to their facility and see who was looking for a certain thing, and okay we'll send him here. that's what i thought. i didn't think his head here we'll sell his arm here, and his skin here. i did not think that would happen. now i look at the box. it may as well be empty. i have no faith that their tom's ashes. >> reporter: you don't think it's tom's ashes? >> no. >> reporter: linda's alarm began when she saw a clip on the news. biological research center the company that took tom's body was under fbi investigation linked to raids in detroit and phoenix. it was not the first time the industry faced scrutiny. the fbi and local law enforcement prosecuted half-a-dozen body brokers. leader are accused of cutting up the bodies and selling them to a middle man. in one case the fbi ales the company received $500 for a head, and $750 for a pair of arms. >> i couldn't believe it. it was a slap in the face. and i was dazed for a few days. i can't believe this is happening. i was just sick to hear about something like that happening. i thought we were doing something good for the medical society and here are people turning it into i don't know what you call it. craziness. >> kathy is tom's sister. >> hey, how are you? >> good how are you? >> reporter: inspired by linda she decided to donate her own husband's body to bijock logical research center when he passed in december. >> i knew what he wanted to do. i respected what he wanted to do. >> reporter: she said her husband loved science and hoped someone could study his cancer and lung disease. >> i did not imagine them cutting his body apart, disposing it putting it where they wanted it. i didn't thip think is would be one part to one place, and another to another place. >> reporter: if you had known that would you have donated his body? >> no, not at all. i expected is to be intact used for medical research and his body cremated as i was told and i would get all his remains back. >> reporter: she, too, received a wooden box, supposedly with her husband's ashes. this fbi document reveals agents recovered her husband's remains at a company address during a search. how was it possible her husbands remains were in two places at once? >> i feel there's no closure. i don't know who they had, where my husband is i don't feel like things are resolved right now. >> representatives for biological research center of illinois would not appear on camera but say they have not done nothing illegal. an attorney provided us with garthy's consent form showing she was informed in writing that the body could be dissected. she admits that she signed the form but the information was not clear. there are others found by the fbi that feel mislead. >> i think people would say we had people signed consent form and it said the worth disarticulate in there. how well do you think the company united with you? >> not at all. >> would have said no. because he didn't want that. he wanted to stay together. and help something. not have someone make a profit from - off of his body. >> do you think there's a problem that there are groups making profit on this type of donation? >> i think it's a problem if they are not informing the donors. >> paul dude abbing runs the anatomical gift association of illinois. >> how many bodies do you have in the room? >> currently 230 235. we need to get up to about 370, 375 to meet the demand for all of our schools. >> unlike the biological resource center of illinois his is a non profit programme that mostly supplied embalmed cadd avers to medical school. >> we probably trained many. >> reporter: are people naive to think a body would remain fully intact when donating is this. >> i think some are. most understand that you know, at least for us the majority of our bodies go through anatopic dissection and study. >> what does it mean to have the body dissected. >> it's not a hack and cut process. when we do park a body maybe we'll send the legs to russia orthopaedics and the torso to north western for the breast reconstruction training programme. we may send the brain to the alzhiemer's programme at iola dudek says once medical research is complete he's transparent about where and how the remains are used. >> although organ and tissue transplants are regulated, there's little oversight when it comes to body parts not in use by humans. how easy would it be for people to use body parts for a reason that is unethical or not agreed pon. >> it would be fairly easy. >> reporter: in fact in a search warrant affidavit, the fbi alleges biological resource center of illinois and an earlier company owned by the same family called anatomical service incorporated engaged in criminal behaviour. run by father and sun, the companies which merged in 2012 are accused of taking body parts from people who take clear commands that they don't want their bodies donated. making statements by their families as to how and why families are used and selling body parts that have hepatitis, septemberize and -- septis and other matters. one doctor we spoke to said he would not have used the specimen had he known it was infected. >> reporter: under what circumstances would you send a body out? >> if it was a school acting specifically for h.i.v. or hep c donor. >> reporter: is there any reason you'd send out an h.i.v. >> none whatsoever. >> reporter: do you think it is appropriate? >> no. >> reporter: biological resource center of illinois supplied these documents, showing the customer was aware of infectious bodies, signing an agreement. the company declined to comment on dozens of cases distributed under a different company name. >> what things do you think needs to be put into place to make people feel secure with donations? >> buyer be ware. i would research the heck out of them to find out who they are, where they are and what they do. and make a decision. the fbi investigation into biological resource center of illinois continued for more than a year with no charges or answers for people like kathy and her standard linda hayes. >> i'd like know where they took his body and what happened from there. it's time for regulations in this industry and moralry they broke laws. >> if you were sitting with the head of biological resource center what would you say to him? >> i'd beat the crap out of him. that's how mad i am. i don't know what else to say. i think he's a jerk i think he treats life and death disrespectfully, and something better be done with that him and his organization. both distributed the ashes from wooden boxes, after all, they are not sure whose ashes they have "america tonight"s lori jane gliha is here. lj we are hearing from the nonprofit organization that there's a serious need for medical research to have the bodies. can you give us an idea how the remains are used. >> yes, a lot of people think the bodies go to a medical school. when you go to a for-profit company, it goes to company a, b, and body parts go across the country for various uses. they may be used for medical research testing of surgical devices or used to do training. i talked to a dentist that said he received a training in front of others using this head. if you are curious, ask before you do the donations. >> i thought it was illegal, frankly, to sell body parts, isn't it? >> there are different acts and rules in place. the national organ transplant acts which prevent the sale. unfortunately, there are different ways around that. what happens is some of these companies charge fees associated with taking some body parts. in these cases they charged fees. and that is how they get around not charging for specific parts and tissues. how can you be sure if you give your remains of your loved ones for all the best purposes and reasons, how can you be sure they are used in the way that your loved one intended and that you want? >> one of the best things to do is ask the questions. you have the right to say is my body going to this this and this. if they say no that may not be the place you want to go. you should know what a for profit place is. there's a group, the association of tissue banks, and they are trying to come up with standard they do a lengthy process and are talking about doing more things being informed consent. making sure you are clear about what could happen with the body. to empower yourself as a consumer, ask the questions, if you are not comfortable, don't do it. >> lori jane gliha, thanks the final shot - a search for justice for a man gunned down in a hail of bulletsar a police mistake. >> later - cleaning up the neighbourhood. how police in america's toughest city set out to make change within the community. >> hot on "america tonight" web sited. hot landing - the most expensive weapon system and have vermonters are trying to wave off the f-35. at aljazeera.com/americatonight in our fast-forward segment a look back at points - questionable actions by police officer. before baltimore or any other cases focussed tension on excessive force, a stunning case in cleveland, where officers fired 137 shots at one vehicle, based on what turned out to be a mistake. "america tonight"s christopher putzel explains. [ sirens ] >> reporter: it started with a car chase. more than 62 police cars went on a 22 minute chase, and police fired 132 shots into the car. the people inside tide of gunshot wounds. one was timothy russell, a dooekon at his family church. >> when i found out it was him, i was shocked. everything announced about the person fleeing from the police ramming the police car and this kind of stuff was totally out of character for him. police say that at the time they believed russell or his passenger melissa williams shot at police before leading officers on a chase. it turned out they mistook the car backfiring for a gunshot. >> it seemed the whole police department was chasing them - car after car after car following this one couple. and it was - it was crazy the case shook the city with many calling the incident racially motivated. michelle and her family were awarded a wrongful death suit awarded $1.5 million. >> he was a human being, i don't think anyone deserves to be treated like that. they did not give them an opportunity to go through the legal system. whatever they did, fleeing from the police it did not warrant a death sentence. >> one of 13 officers who shot at williams and russell was criminally charged fast-forward to the trial of that officer, michael brelo facing involuntary manslaughter. prosecutors said he alone fired 49 shots including the final 15. protesters have been keeping vigil as the judge blshts. >> next the toughest job in america's stuffest city. camden ners ci and the broken -- new jersey and the broken window approach to cleaning up crime. and a second chance at justice. wednesday on "america tonight", after 10 years of america's drug war, experts are reconsidering what victory means. >> the war on drugs is not a war on drugs, it's the war on people. thursday... $36. for this kind of money i really don't give a s**t. >> a real look at the american dream. only on al jazeera america. >> part of our month long look at working in america. "hard earned". so what do you do with a dubious distinction, the most dangerous city in america? camden new jersey faced the moniker, and "america tonight" turned its focus on efforts of reform beginning two weeks ago. now president obama touted camden as a model for other cities. let's make a difference from "america tonight"s adam may. >> reporter: a camden police officer confronted by a woman hiding in a shower with a 12 inch knife. for police station, the dangers of the job are very real. nothing like it used to be. >> shooting homicides in the alley up here - there was a homicide tlsks a shooting in the -- there was a shooting in the store behind us. >> there's a lot of crime rate. it's hard to imagine, it looks clean. >> it's different. >> officer christian jeffreys walks the beat in camden's fairview neighbourhood. >> all done for the summer? >> good. >> he's one of 400 officers on patrol in america's dangerous city. in 2013 camden dismantled its police department, bringing in blood. the orders - engage in real community policing. more boots on the ground. 8-hour patrol shifts on foot. making making arrests like this more common. how does walking this square decrease crime? >> if i was in a vehicle i wouldn't spend much time in it. like it's been done before prior to the camden police department changing over. >> reporter: since the reforms, crime plummeted in yorkshire square. >> we know who lives here, who doesn't. we see the same people in here playing with the kids. >> reporter: the city introduced a state of the art surveillance system. more than 100 live streaming cameras monitored 24 hours a day. we have something that the officers are doing, through a camera. >> reporter: orlando, the new assistant police chief, says the cameras are not only helping solve crimes hike this shooting in 2014 but police are using them to predict crimes. what is known as the broken window theory of policing. >> we look for those things that are indicative of crime. when we see people conduct themselves maybe in a way that would suggest they are about to fight. rather than waiting for a fight to break out. we want to be in front of it. where there's europating in public, there's other things creating a public safety nuisance, not just a crime, but a nuisance, we want to be out in front of it. >> if you attack the little things, it impacts the bigger things. if we use the camera for the needle in a haystack where we just waited for the one shooting. the impact would be minimal. >> you'd still have the shooting. >> absolutely. we want to be out in front of it. they are indicative of crime. >> the police are taking their extensive network of cameras to a new level, launching a virtual neighbourhood watch, allowing residents to tap into the cameras, a first of its kind programme in the nation. >> i can access a camera so i can watch the playground. if there's a group of individuals that are displays suspicious behaviour, we can zero in on that. >> reporter: brian morgan coaches little league it used to be a haven for prostitution and drug. now four surveillance cameras watch the children at play. >> he's playing baseball taking the first swing on a swing. what can be more natural. we attribute that to new surveillance. >> reporter: you can do it on the phone. >> that's the cool thing. those of us connected to the league and other community groups have the ability to log into the camera system a few residents, screened in advance, have been given access to the interactive community alert network, known as icann, tips on anonymous, and are able to use the cameras and zoom in. >> i very good police officer will never know the area as well as the residents themselves. they know all the relationships, they can put it into sense for us. >> reporter: since enact the changes, there has been reports of big drops in crime, homicides down almost 50% since 2012. overall crime down 18% compared to may last year. still, there are some detractors. >> reporter: the police call the strategy community policing. what do you call it? >> community terrorizing. it's pushing the community for voting them creating a hostile environment. >> this man is an activist in camden and lost trust in the local police force and said officers are under a lot of pressure to perform, so tactics are often heavy-handed. >> there's a lot of complaints against the police officer and their tactics and how they harass young people. we have a lawyer looking for people who have been stopped and frisked illegally and stuff like that. and challenging and pushing back that. they are stopping young people without a record and pushing them into trumped up stuff. it's a negative. >> one thing everyone agrees n, camden's crime problem is not just about law enforcement. jobs are scarce and poverty runs generations deep. >> he loves it. >> reporter: but there are signs of change. police interacting with people working together to make the city safer. >> camden was named most violent city in america. >> mm. >> reporter: you work here. what is it like to watch the change? >> personally, i think it's great to watch it. from when we came here until now, i see the difference. i hope it goes away for camden that game the ultimate test whether the new approach works - money. companies invested nearly $1 billion in camden over the last year lured by evidence that camden is becoming a safer place. tell us what you think at aljazeera.com/americatonight. talk to us on twitter or facebook. come back, we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow. i'm "ali velshi on target". blowing the whistle. a small town farmer taking on a big agro giant in an animal welfare war crusaders or criminals - the push to silence those threatening to expose where our food comes from americans are eating more meat paying less for it than at any other time in u.s. history. at what cost? animals raised in barns of the 1950s have given way to an industrial