Bill Text: FL S0844 | 2017 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Criminal Offenses Involving Tombs and Memorials

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-01 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/CS/HB 107 (Ch. 2017-40) [S0844 Detail]

Download: Florida-2017-S0844-Introduced.html

---

       Florida Senate - 2017                                     SB 844
       
       
        
       By Senator Simmons
       
       9-00574A-17                                            2017844__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to criminal offenses involving tombs
    3         and memorials; amending s. 872.02, F.S.; defining and
    4         redefining terms; making technical changes;
    5         prohibiting the excavation, exposing, movement,
    6         removal, or other disturbance of the contents of a
    7         tomb or memorial; providing criminal penalties;
    8         providing exceptions to the prohibition against
    9         disturbance of the contents of a tomb or memorial for
   10         cemeteries that are exempt from certain regulation;
   11         providing an effective date.
   12          
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Section 872.02, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   16  read:
   17         872.02 Injuring or removing tomb or memorial monument;
   18  disturbing contents of grave or tomb; penalties; exceptions.—
   19         (1) For purposes of this section, the term:
   20         (a) “Exempt cemetery” means a cemetery that is exempt from
   21  regulation pursuant to s. 497.260(1).
   22         (b) “Legally authorized person” has the same meaning
   23  provided in s. 497.005.
   24         (c) “Memorial” means a structure or thing placed or
   25  designed for a memorial of the dead. The term includes a
   26  monument or gravestone.
   27         (d) “Operator” means an owner, officer, employee, or agent.
   28         (e) “Tomb” includes a grave space, mausoleum, columbarium,
   29  or belowground crypt, as those terms are defined in s. 497.005,
   30  and also includes a burial mound, an earthen or shell monument
   31  containing human skeletal remains or associated burial
   32  artifacts, or any other enclosure for the burial of the dead.
   33         (2) A person commits a felony of the third degree,
   34  punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084,
   35  if the person who willfully and knowingly:
   36         (a) Destroys, mutilates, defaces, injures, or removes a any
   37  tomb or memorial, monument, gravestone, burial mound, earthen or
   38  shell monument containing human skeletal remains or associated
   39  burial artifacts, or other structure or thing placed or designed
   40  for a memorial of the dead, or a any fence, railing, curb, or
   41  other thing intended for the protection or ornamentation of a
   42  any tomb or memorial; or, monument, gravestone, burial mound,
   43  earthen or shell monument containing human skeletal remains or
   44  associated burial artifacts, or other structure before
   45  mentioned, or for any enclosure for the burial of the dead, or
   46  willfully
   47         (b) Destroys, mutilates, removes, cuts, breaks, or injures
   48  a any tree, shrub, or plant placed or being within an any such
   49  enclosure for the burial of the dead, commits a felony of the
   50  third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083,
   51  or s. 775.084.
   52         (3)(2) A person who willfully and knowingly excavates,
   53  exposes, moves, removes, or otherwise disturbs the contents of a
   54  tomb or grave commits a felony of the second degree, punishable
   55  as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.
   56         (4)(3) This section does shall not apply to:
   57         (a) A any person acting under the direction or authority of
   58  the Division of Historical Resources of the Department of State,
   59  to cemeteries operating under chapter 497, or to a any person
   60  otherwise authorized by law to commit an act remove or disturb a
   61  tomb, monument, gravestone, burial mound, or similar structure,
   62  or its contents, as described in subsection (2) (1).
   63         (b) An operator of an exempt cemetery who is conducting
   64  ordinary maintenance, if such maintenance does not relocate a
   65  memorial, tomb, or contents of a tomb to another plot or site.
   66         (c) An operator of an exempt cemetery who relocates a
   67  memorial, a tomb, or the contents of a tomb to another plot or
   68  site if:
   69         1. Before the relocation, the operator obtains written
   70  authorization for the relocation from a legally authorized
   71  person or a court order authorizing the relocation;
   72         2. A natural disaster causes damage to the exempt cemetery
   73  which necessitates the relocation; or
   74         3. More than 75 years have elapsed since the interment,
   75  entombment, or inurnment at the exempt cemetery and the operator
   76  of the exempt cemetery publishes a public notice, once a week
   77  for 4 consecutive weeks, in a newspaper of general circulation
   78  within the county in which the exempt cemetery is located.
   79         a. The public notice must contain the name of the exempt
   80  cemetery; the name, address, and telephone number of the
   81  representative of the exempt cemetery with whom written
   82  objections may be filed; the reason and necessity for the
   83  relocation; the name of the deceased person entombed, interred,
   84  or inurned; the date of initial entombment, interment, or
   85  inurnment; the proposed site of relocation; and the proposed
   86  date of relocation. The proposed date of relocation may not be
   87  less than 30 days after the last date of publication.
   88         b. If a written objection to the relocation:
   89         (I) Is not received within 30 days after the last date of
   90  publication of the public notice, the exempt cemetery may
   91  proceed with the relocation.
   92         (II) Is received from a legally authorized person, a public
   93  hearing shall be held before the city council if the exempt
   94  cemetery is located in a municipality or before the applicable
   95  county commission if the exempt cemetery is not located within a
   96  municipality. Interested parties shall have the opportunity to
   97  be heard at the hearing in person or by counsel and to introduce
   98  testimony. The council or commission shall determine whether to
   99  grant or deny the request for the relocation. If granted, the
  100  exempt cemetery may proceed with the relocation.
  101         (4) For purposes of this section, the term “tomb” includes
  102  any mausoleum, columbarium, or belowground crypt.
  103         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.