§ 635:6 — Interference With Cemetery or Burial Ground

I. No person, without the written authorization of the owner of a burial plot, or the lineal descendant or ascendant of the deceased, if such owner or lineal descendant or ascendant is known, or the written authorization of the governing board of the municipality in which the burial plot lies, if the owner or lineal descendant or ascendant is unknown, shall:
(a) Purposely or knowingly destroy, mutilate, injure or remove any tomb, monument, gravestone, marker, or other structure, or any portion or fragment thereof, placed or designed for a memorial of the dead, or any fence, railing, gate, curb, or plot delineator or other enclosure for the burial of the dead.
(b) Purposely or knowingly disturb the contents of any tomb or grave in any cemetery or burial ground.
II. The governing board of the municipality in which the burial plot lies shall not grant approval for the removal or disturbance of a tomb, monument, gravestone, marker, or plot delineator without first giving 30 days' notice, along with a report of the full circumstances, to the division of historical resources, that such approval has been requested. The governing board of the municipality shall maintain a record of the date, circumstances, and disposition of the request for removal or disturbance.

Legislative History

1987, 107:1. 2015, 95:1, eff. Aug. 4, 2015.