A former morgue worker has admitted to having sex with up to 100 female corpses in the US.

Kenneth Douglas told an Ohio court he had sexually abused three of the cadavers while he was drunk or high on drugs in 1991 and 1992, WPTV reports.

"I would just get on top of them and pull my pants down," Douglas said.

The court heard that the 60-year-old had committed the depraved acts from 1976 to 1992.

Ohio's Hamilton County now faces enormous legal bills after the families of three of Douglas's victims won the right to sue the county on Friday.

Douglas was only caught in 2008 after his semen was found inside the body of a 19-year-old woman who was murdered.

Her murderer admitted to the killing but denied the rape allegation.

Douglas admitted that he had had sex with the dead teenager and was sentenced to three years’ jail.

In 2012 he pleaded guilty to abusing two other female corpses.

Douglas said he would only attack the dead women if he had been drinking or doing drugs.

"If I hadn't had anything to drink when I went to work, it wouldn't happen," he said

The former morgue worker's wife gave evidence at his trial, saying that Douglas "reeked of sex" when he would return home from the night shift.

She said she called the coroner's office and reported him but the morgue supervisor told her to stop calling.

The morgue's director was accused of failing to supervise Douglas.