CINCINNATI —  A county in Ohio has agreed to pay $8 million to settle a lawsuit over photos that used bodies in the county morgue as props.

The settlement still has to be approved by a federal judge but calls for the money to be paid to more than 500 families over two years. The county is to formally apologize and ensure that all offensive photos are destroyed. The settlement also includes grief counseling and a memorial.

A photographer posed the bodies with fruit, doll house furniture and other props as part of an art project to illustrate the cycle of life. He was convicted in 2001 of gross abuse of a corpse for taking the pictures.

An official said those responsible no longer work for the county.