BRENTWOOD, N.H. (AP) – A former Massachusetts medical examiner convicted of signing cremation certificates for Bayview Crematory without first viewing the bodies has asked a judge to throw out the jury verdict and grant him a new trial.

Putnam Breed, 68, of Hampton Falls, was convicted last month on nine counts of fraudulent handling of official documents and four counts of theft. Prosecutors said he was paid $35 apiece to sign thousands of cremation certificates for Bayview.

The crematorium, which handled up to 2,000 bodies a year from funeral homes in Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire, had been operating for six years without registering with or being inspected by the state.