Chad Mulvin was shot and killed over a bar tab last year, but he's been on ice ever since. Somewhere in the bowels of the Allegheny County coroner's office, Mr. Mulvin's body has been lying unceremoniously nine months after it was thought to have been sent to a funeral home for cremation.

Homicide detectives discovered the mistake last week after requesting the victim's clothing as evidence in the upcoming trial of Joseph Larkin, his alleged killer. But instead of Mr. Mulvin's clothes, workers for the coroner found the homicide victim in a freezer.

It's unclear whose -- or what -- ashes were laid to rest in July 2004. There's speculation that Mr. Mulvin's clothes were accidentally released to the funeral home. No one knows exactly what was cremated at the time, so the mystery deepens.

There is justifiable embarrassment at the coroner's office over this snafu, and, we suspect, justifiable outrage among Allegheny County residents. There could be further ramifications from this at the Larkin trial.

Joseph Larkin's lawyer is arguing that the misplacement of evidence will only weaken the case for the prosecution. Meanwhile, Chad Mulvin's family is confronted by the reality that his earthly remains were not laid to rest as they expected last July -- a fact that only can deepen their grief.

The protocol for the coroner's office releasing bodies to funeral homes obviously broke down. After a thorough investigation, we can only hope this problem will not happen again. Although 2,000 bodies may cross the coroner's slab every year, there is no excuse for losing track of a single one.