South Carolina Man In Custody Battle Over His Amputated Leg

A South Carolina man who stored his severed leg in a barbecue smoker that was later auctioned off is locked in a custody dispute with a North Carolina man who found it.

John Wood's leg was amputated near the knee after a 2004 airplane crash. He asked doctors to give it to him so he could be buried as a 'whole man' when he died.

So Wood kept the limb in a smoker in a storage facility after he lost his home. But when he missed his monthly payment, his belongings were auctioned off by the storage company, and his smoker was bought by Shannon Whisnant.

Whisnant initially gave it to police, who turned it over to a funeral home when it became clear it wasn't involved in foul play. But Whisnant, who put a sign on the empty smoker charging adults $3 and children $1 for a look, now wants it back.

"He's making a freak show out of it," Wood tells a paper. "He wants to put money in his pocket with this thing."

Whisnant, who was unsuccessful in his bid to get the leg from the funeral home, decided his best move was to persuade Wood to share custody and profits.

"It's a strange incident and Halloween's just around the corner," Whisnant said. "The price will be going up if I get the leg."

Wood, who was heading to pick up his leg from the funeral home, said the two men could meet, but he was not interested in using the leg to make money.

"I just think it's despicable," he says. "I don't mind having the 15 minutes of fame, but I'm not looking to really profit off this thing."

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