§ 295 — Removal of remains of deceased members of armed forces

§ 295. Removal of remains of deceased members of armed forces. Upon a\nverified petition presented to a judge of a court of record by any armed\nforces' organization in any town or city in this state by a majority of\nits officers, or a majority of any memorial committee in any town or\ncity where there are two or more veteran armed forces' organizations, or\nin towns or cities where there are no veteran armed forces'\norganizations, upon the petition of five or more veterans of the armed\nforces, the judge to whom said verified petition is presented shall make\nan order to show cause, returnable before him or her at a time and place\nwithin the county in not less than fourteen or more than twenty days\nfrom the date of presentation of said petition, why the remains of any\ndeceased members of the armed forces buried in potter's field, or in any\nneglected or abandoned cemeteries, should not be removed to and\nreinterred in a properly kept incorporated cemetery in the same town or\ncity or in a town adjoining the town or city in which the remains of a\ndeceased member of the armed forces are buried, and to fix the amount of\nthe expenses for such removal and reinterment, and the order to show\ncause shall provide for its publication in a newspaper, to be designated\nin the order, which is published nearest to the cemetery from which the\nremoval is sought to be made, once in each week for two successive\nweeks. The verified petition presented to the judge shall show that the\npetitioners are a majority of the officers of a veteran armed forces\norganization, or a majority of a memorial committee in towns or cities\nwhere two or more veteran armed forces organizations exist, or that the\npetitioners are honorably discharged veterans of the armed forces in\ntowns or cities where no veteran armed forces organization exists, or\nthat the petitioners have a qualifying condition, as defined in section\none of the veterans' services law, and received a discharge other than\nbad conduct or dishonorable from such service and are in towns or cities\nwhere no veteran armed forces organizations exist, or that the\npetitioners are discharged LGBT veterans, as defined in section one of\nthe veterans' services law, and received a discharge other than bad\nconduct or dishonorable from such service and are in towns and cities\nwhere no veteran armed forces organizations exist, and (1) the name of\nthe deceased member or members of the armed forces, whose remains are\nsought to be removed, and if known the unit in which he, she or they\nserved; (2) the name and location of the cemetery in which he or she is\ninterred and from which removal is asked to be made; (3) the name and\nlocation of the incorporated cemetery to which the remains are desired\nto be removed and reinterred; (4) the facts showing the reasons for such\nremoval. Upon the return day of the order to show cause and at the time\nand place fixed in said order, upon filing proof of publication of the\norder to show cause with the judge, if no objection is made thereto, he\nor she shall make an order directing the removal of the remains of said\ndeceased member or members of the armed forces to the cemetery\ndesignated in the petition within the town or city or within a town\nadjoining the town or city in which the remains are then buried and\nshall specify in the order the amount of the expenses of such removal,\nwhich expenses of removal and reinterment, including the expense of the\nproceeding under this section, shall be a charge upon the county in\nwhich the town or city is situated from which the removal is made and\nsuch expenses shall be a county charge and audited by the board of\nsupervisors of the county and paid in the same manner as other county\ncharges. On and after the removal and reinterment of the remains of the\ndeceased member or members of the armed forces in the armed forces'\nplot, the expenses for annual care of the grave in the armed forces'\nburial plot to which the removal is made shall be annually provided by\nthe town or city in which the remains were originally buried, at the\nrate of not to exceed twenty dollars per grave, and shall be paid\nannually to the incorporated cemetery association to which the remains\nof each deceased member of the armed forces may be removed and\nreinterred. The petition and order shall be filed in the county clerk's\noffice of the county in which the remains of the deceased member of the\narmed forces were originally interred, and the service of a certified\ncopy of the final order upon the cemetery association shall be made\nprior to any removal. Any relative of the deceased member or members of\nthe armed forces, or the officer of any cemetery association in which\nthe remains of the deceased member or members of the armed forces were\noriginally interred, or the authorities of the county in which the\nmember or members of the armed forces were originally buried, may oppose\nthe granting of said order and the judge shall summarily hear the\nstatement of the parties and make such order as the justice and equity\nof the application shall require. Any headstone or monument which marks\nthe grave of the deceased member of the armed forces shall be removed\nand reset at the grave in the cemetery in which the removal is permitted\nto be made and in each case the final order shall provide the amount of\nthe expenses of such removals and reinterment and resetting of the\nheadstone or monument, including the expenses of the proceedings under\nthis section; except that where provision is otherwise made for the\npurchase or erection of a new headstone, monument or marker at the grave\nin the cemetery to which such removal is permitted, such old headstone\nor monument need not be so removed and reset, in which case such final\norder shall not provide for the expense of resetting. The order shall\ndesignate the person or persons having charge of the removals and\nreinterments. Upon completion of the removal, reinterment and resetting\nof the headstones or monuments, the person or persons having charge of\nthe same shall make a verified report of the removal, reinterment and\nresetting of the headstone or monument and file the report in the\nclerk's office of the proper county. The words "member of the armed\nforces" shall be construed to mean a member of the armed forces who\nserved in the armed forces of the United States and who (5) was\nhonorably discharged from such service, or (6) has a qualifying\ncondition, as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and\nhas received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from\nsuch service, or (7) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section\none of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other\nthan bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, and the words "armed\nforces plot" shall be construed to mean a plot of land in any\nincorporated cemetery set apart to be exclusively used as a place for\ninterring the remains of deceased veterans of the armed forces of the\nUnited States.\n