From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veronica_Lake#Death
Lake died on July 7, 1973, of hepatitis and acute renal failure
(complications of her alcoholism) in Burlington, Vermont’s Fletcher
Allen Hospital.[35][36] Her son, Michael, claimed her body.What does “claimed her body” mean?
Answer
“Claiming” an object (like a body, or a lost item) means telling someone that it is yours. Claiming a body means that a relative or other person of someone who has died takes charge of the body for burial or cremation. This is usually done by the person’s close relatives (spouse, children), but the person can also specify someone in her will to make the arrangements, or a government authority might do so in special cases.
This passage is saying that Veronica’s son Michael went to the hospital and took her body away for the funeral.
Attribution
Source : Link , Question Author : Derfder , Answer Author : chrylis -cautiouslyoptimistic-
