Family cancels funeral live stream over wave of attacks on father who died after denying coronavirus

'We will never be able to erase from our hearts and minds the negative posts that have been made and shared about John this past week'

The family of an Ohio man who described the coronavirus pandemic as a “political ploy” before subsequently dying from Covid-19, has been forced to cancel the livestream of his funeral after a barrage of online outrage over his posts.

John McDaniel died on 15 April from the virus, just over a month after he criticised the rising panic about the disease, and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s response, in posts on Facebook.

The posts, which have since been deleted, included the statement: “If you are paranoid about getting sick just don’t go out. It shouldn’t keep those of us from Living our Lives. The Madness has to stop.”

After Mr McDaniel passed away, links to his obituary and the Facebook posts were spread on social media.

His wife, Lisa McDaniel, found herself dealing with a public backlash while also grieving for her husband of 31 years.

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In a statement, she said: “We will never be able to erase from our hearts and minds the negative posts that have been made and shared about John this past week.”

Ms McDaniel has now cancelled plans for a livestream of his funeral.

“During this time of mourning, John's story, along with early assumptions that he stated on Twitter and Facebook have turned into national news," she said. “This news has opened the floodgates for people to share their own misguided anger and unfounded assumptions about a man they don't know. Wanting to protect my family and John's legacy, we have decided not to live stream his funeral services via Facebook today.”

Ms McDaniel’s statement goes on to say that the actions taken by the national and state government were indeed correct and that quarantine and social distancing have been effective in flattening the curve of reported cases.

She also clarifies that Mr McDaniel ordered staff at his company to work from home when Ohio went into lockdown, and upon finding out he’d been in contact with someone that had tested positive, he immediately self-isolated.

“Many, like John, made statements early on not fully aware of the severity of Covid-19; many have retracted their statements knowing now the effects of this pandemic,” she said. “We know if John was still here with us he would acknowledge the national crisis we are in, abide by the stay-at-home order, and encourage family and friends to do the same.”

The family will be privately recording the funeral service to share with family and friends.

Three days after Mr McDaniels passed away, hundreds of protesters rallied against Governor DeWine’s stay-at-home order outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.

There have now been 13,725 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ohio, and 557 recorded deaths.