JUNEAU, Alaska, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- Police in Juneau, Alaska, apologized to a couple who were told their son had died in a car crash when it was actually a different man with the same name.
Jay and Karen Priest, parents of Justin Priest, 29, said an Alaska State Trooper visited their home in Palmer, Alaska, about 3 a.m. Thursday to inform them their son had died in a crash in Juneau, about 570 miles away.
Jay Priest called the Juneau Police Department and confirmed Justin Priest had been the one killed in the crash.
However, when the parents went to Justin's Anchorage home to inform his girlfriend, they were shocked to find their living son answered the door.
Juneau Police Chief Bryce Johnson said the mix-up started early Thursday when the department contacted Alaska State Troopers and asked them to find out from the parents if their son had been in Juneau at the time of the incident. "We somehow communicated it wrong, and they thought that we wanted to tell the family that their son had died in the crash," Johnson told CNN.
"It was our case, our responsibility," Johnson said. "The family deserves for us to acknowledge that it was our mistake, and we are sorry."
The chief said his department would review the incident and make any necessary changes to protocols.
The Justin Priest who died in the crash had a different age and middle name from the Justin living in Anchorage, police said. His family was informed of his death Thursday.
