Why did they cremate Lee?

Lee Dutton was the eldest son of John Dutton, the patriarch of a powerful ranching family in Montana.3 He was also the head of security for the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, which means he had to deal with a lot of conflicts and threats from various enemies, such as Native Americans, land developers, environmentalists, and rival ranchers.4 In the first episode of the show, Lee was killed in a shootout with some Native Americans who had stolen some cattle from the ranch.5 One of them was Robert Long, the brother of Monica Long, who was married to Kayce Dutton, Lee’s younger brother. Kayce was also involved in the shootout, and he was the one who actually killed Robert Long, after Lee had been shot in the spine by another Native American.

This is where things get complicated. You see, Lee’s death was not only a personal tragedy for the Dutton family, but also a legal problem. The official story was that Lee had killed Robert Long in self-defense, after Robert had shot him first. But this story was not true. In fact, a coroner’s report showed that Lee would have been paralyzed by Robert’s bullet, and therefore could not have shot him back. This meant that there had to be a third shooter involved (Kayce), who could be charged with murder if his identity was revealed.

So what did John Dutton do to protect his son and his family? He did what any reasonable rancher would do: he blew up the coroner’s office and computer, killed the coroner himself, and cremated Lee’s body in a horse incinerator. Yes, you read that right. A horse incinerator. Apparently, this is a device that ranchers use to dispose of dead horses in an environmentally friendly way. But John Dutton used it to dispose of his son’s body in a legally convenient way. By doing so, he destroyed any evidence that could contradict his version of events, and prevented any possibility of exhuming Lee’s body for another autopsy.

And that’s why the Dutton family cremated Lee’s body in the show “Yellowstone”. I hope this explanation satisfies your curiosity and helps you understand the show better. Or maybe it makes you want to watch something else entirely. Either way, I’m glad I could be of service.