Grief, Outrage over Grave Desecrations

Four Arrested for Digging Up Hundreds of Graves to Resell the Plots; Little Consolation for Victims

(CBS)  It's an alleged scam to make your skin crawl, one that can break your faith that a loved one's final resting place will remain final.

Police say four workers at a cemetery outside Chicago dug up and dumped as many as 300 bodies so they could resell the funeral plots. Cynthia Bowers reports from where grief has turned to outrage.

Hundreds of shell-shocked families descended on the suburban Chicago cemetery today, demanding answers.

In what is being called a real life horror story, Burr Oak cemetery workers are accused of digging up as many as 300 graves, dumping bones and decaying bodies into piles, and reselling plots to an unsuspecting public.

"This crime is a whole new dimension that shows what people would go through for financial gain," said Cook County, Ill. state's attorney Anita Alvarez.

That financial gain amounted to as much as $300,000 dollars over the last four or five years. The scheme, uncovered only after guilt-ridden workers alerted the owners, targeted older isolated graves with no headstones.

Linda Foster says it's like losing her dad all over again.

"I've got the marking so there's no mistaking where he was and he's not there," she said. "It's awful, God awful."

Gwendolyn Hicks, who can't find her son Christopher's grave, says she suspected for a long time something was wrong in this 64-year-old cemetery.

"Where are they putting the bodies? The place never expands," she said. "Where are they putting the bodies?"

This is about much more than profound personal pain. This is also a desecration of black history, because for years this was the only cemetery around Chicago where African-Americans could bury their dead.

Lynching victim Emmett Till's body lies here as does singer Dinah Washington, and boxing legend Ezzard Charles as well as thousands of lesser known, but no less loved.

"I have my grandmother and my uncle buried there. I don't know what to tell my mom," said relative Teresa Glover.

So far, four employees have been charged in the scheme and face up to 8 years behind bars.

"These folks here, nobody deserves anything like this to occur to them. We're trying to bring closure but it's gonna take a long time to do it," said Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart.

Investigators worry they may never be able to figure out which remains came from which grave, which means many families may have a long wait before they can rest in peace.

[november20]

Many of my family members were interred at Burr Oak Cemetary and we are incensed that something of this magnitude could happend. This had to take place over a period of time. It seems that no one have taken any responsibility there for a long time. Everyone involved with Burr Oak Cemetary should be prosecuted to the fullest.

[thgdriver]

Opps, East Coast!!

[thgdriver]

Actually my ancestors are buried in a centuries old cemetery on the East cost. While doing some family research there about ten years ago I noticed some new graves nearby. I remarked to my son that I found it strange there was room in that old section (founded 250 years ago or more) for new arrivals. I figured it was just my suspicious mind setting in but now I am not so sure.

[mswolfestock]

These four sub-humans look like they took the money and spent it on Big Macs and KFC. Totally disgusting.

[horse3farm]

I believe part of the problem in this country is morality. So high and mighty about the dead. Your loved one wasn't in that grave. A pile of bones are. Your loved one is supposed to be in heaven. Guess you religious people just see it your own way.

[IronfootMcGurk]

It has for thousands of years been a common practice to remove the bones from the grave to an ossuary after the flesh has decayed. It was so in Jesus time and happened in Elizabethan England--remember Shakespeare's request "For Jesus' sake forbear to dig the dust enclosed here...blest be he that spares my bones and curst be he that moves these stones"?

What happened in Chicago is a minor cime, a trespass to property rights, but no more. And these reporters and supposed victims are schmaltzing up the story.

Think for a minute: this had been going on for a while. If a grave was regularly visited, it would have been immediately noticed that the marker or stone had been moved. What we have here are people who had not visited the grave for years complaining about the shock to their emotions. Ridiculous. They are milking this in hopes of a profitable lawsuit.

[ABM_21]

You know, the more I listen to conservatives, the more convinced I am of just how dumb and hearltess they really are. "This is a 'victimless crime'? "Cemetaries are a 'waste of space'? Just how stupid can you get? When some idiot just 'trying to make a buck' made a comic book depicting the murderss of Jeffrey Dahmer, I'm quite sure some idiot conservative wished he's thought of that idea before this clown. The fact of the matter is, there is nothing 'disgusting' about honoring the life of a loved one who is now deceased. I guesds this clown would spare himself the expense of buying a casket for his parents, and just throw them into a hole in the ground. How sad.
One even mentioned the spectacle that was Michael Jackson's funeral. Was it his fault he was so popular? Was it his fault he had millions of adoring fans around the world? If LA wouldn't have done something to at least supervise this frenzy, someone would have gotten hurt. That is not a 'waste of money'; it's called being responsible. Add to that this callousness may have something to do with the skin color of the deceased. Racist even when blacks are dead, are you? What bigots some people are...

[wasrinrime]

I don't care what lame excuses people try to come up with, this is horrific and very sick. Here is to hoping that these clowns 8 year prison sentence (which is way to little)is filled with a living hell. The cemetary most likely gave the go ahead even though they will deny, deny, deny.

[ABM_21]

Here's hoping they give these clowns 20 year prison sentences apiece.

[YCantWeAllGetAlong]

Did you notice the suspects are black? Yet they STILL had to bring up the race issue. Do you think the black suspects are being called on that? It just goes to show that race plays SUCH a ridiculous role in the media. Imagine if the suspects had been white? The headlines would have been, "Racial Graveyard Horror" or something like that. I wish the media would see all this BS for what it is. Notice the swimming center story is a racist one since the owners are white and the people whining are black. Some things never change.

[Kintari]

Throw the book at these creeps...desecrating graves and voter tampering.

[stn_sage]

To IrishWench01:

It is what these acts represent that make them SO vile and why they deserve consideration for more aggressive punishment!

First, it's a heinous act! It's like choking a cat or molesting a child, only a sick and twisted mind would do it!

Second, and a person with a mind like that will continue to be lurking around society somewhere, until they grab you IrishWench, and carve your heart out with a tablespoon! And, I for one, would feel bad about that, because we'd miss your commentary on this board!

Third, it's a huge FINGER to law and order and civility in society, it's a repudiation of everything we SHOULD be standing for!

Fourth, true these occupants of the plots are dead, but shouldn't they and their contractual rights be acknowledged and protected? I think so!

Fifth, what about the trauma induced in the relatives of these people? I don't want to over-estimate that, but I don't want to downplay it, either!
A lot of these folks ARE going to be immensely traumatized as a result of this!

Finally, you're an intelligent person, 'Wench'! I believe if you consider the matter, at the least, you'll see why I think it's so important!

[whereisgrandad]

Perhaps you should take an interest in cemetery practices in Dryden, NY. My grandfather's grave disappeared about 3 weeks after he was buried there. The interred have apparently been moved all over various cemeteries serving the Dryden region--or their burial plots have simply disappeared. The time period I'm referring to is, if I remember correctly, late fifties? Long time passing, but you will find that interested parties are still trying to locate the whereabouts of their dear departed remains.

[ajjaxtheleast]

Regardless of respecting employees that "take their work
home with them,,lets check out Anna Nichol Smith's plot.

"Grave diggers" didn't have that much to spare
but now this pretty much removes even
that little tad.

Time to see about ALL cemetaries!!

It's doubtful that this is the only "bad" cemetary around.

How many others are setting up nighttime shops in
pitch black cemetaries digging up caskets, shinning a
light,,,"oh yes!,,This ones a keeper, whatta'ya think, Ned"?.

No matter what one's job is, at night before sleeping, your
successes and failures of the day are recounted and
mental images there-of flash through your mind,,,
to say that these dudes were of a different
cut is a gross understatement.

[riddelup]

These people do not look like the masterminds in this affair. Is there more?

[stn_sage]

As a civilization, we should steer away from capital punishment for crimes committed.

But, this is a case, where due to the nature of the crime, that it should be considered for capital punishment along with crimes like murder, treason, etcetera.

[IrishWench01]

You think the disturbance of the dead is worth the cost of a human life? The dead are more sacred than the living. If so then I suppose you could view that as a reward to the living to be put to death. Curious logic.

[brianbwb-2009]

To irishWench01

Perhaps if you consider it a theft of property that the victims paid a substantial sum for, and for whom the loss is more than just the money, then it could be considered a capital theft. The price of the gravesite probably constitutes a felony, so for, say 300 felonies the punishment should be....

[IrishWench01]

brianbwb-2009 ...

I don't discount the severity or the emotional impact of this crime. I do feel that the outrage is a bit over the top with all of the things going on that don't seem to get much of a rise. I see young boys, husbands, fathers, sons dying in a senseless undertaking who receive very little coverage or acknowledgement. I suppose I should blame the press rather than the population because they have more appreciation for the glamour and sensational than the ugliness of everyday happenings.

I will add that I am against capital punishment for crimes that only involve financial or emotional loss. Years ago in a criminal justice class I took, we visited a women's prison in Canon City Colorado. I still remember the shock and disgust I felt upon learning that the majority of women with the longest and harshest sentences wee those that had stolen large amounts of money, commited fraud, passed bad checks habitually or counterfeited payroll checks. Thos ethat had commited assault or murder has much lighter sentences.

This from a population that professes vehemently to value life.

[Sloughfoot]

Better get ol' Al Sharpie and Jassie Jackson here pronto, this is a damn White Conspiracy to discredit the black community.

[leatherneck1954]

It is ironic some here equate these grave robbers with being liberal, a code word for democrat, guess that them being black is what gives this assumption, but am I the only one whom has noticed on fox & friends how all the anchors are white, but all the GOP strategists whom show up on all the other networks defending the GOP are largely black or non white? The GOP loves money, so they would not fit in a liberal setting, but fit right in with any GOP fund raiser, since motto is love of money, which is the root of all evil according to the bible! Yes its almost comical how the GOP trolls try to spin this as a "liberal issue", but grave robbers and republicans do have the love of money in common, and sadly we all have been robbed by them for their past 8 years of great leadership, leaving us bankrupt, sad and sorry!

[thusspokezara]

What loved ones? If they had had loved ones, the loved ones would have been going to the burial grounds on a regular basis as loved ones usually do to plant flowers and would have noticed when they went to plant to flowers that the graves had been disturbed and they would not have been able to plant the flowers and they would have gone to the front office and said hey the grave of our loved one has been disturbed and we could not plant the flowers.

[John_Merritt]

Well what if their loved ones lived out of state? All my relatives are buried 1,000's of miles from my home. I will still be ticked even if I didn't get the chance to see them. I see you read my post. My sentiments are still the same, because your heart gets colder by the minute.

[John_Merritt]

Also, did you realize your sentence contained 85 words, with no comma's. That is a mouth full. You must have had steam coming out of your ears?

[ToolMangler1]

"by thusspokezara July 9, 2009 5:42 PM PDT
What loved ones? If they had had loved ones, the loved ones would have been going to the burial grounds on a regular basis as loved ones usually do to plant flowers and would have noticed when they went to plant to flowers that the graves had been disturbed and they would not have been able to plant the flowers and they would have gone to the front office and said hey the grave of our loved one has been disturbed and we could not plant the flowers."





It will not matter when the defilement has happened, Once it is done there is no going back. The Family loses everything they treasure. You sir/ma'am are to soulless to understand that.

[thusspokezara]

This is essentially a victimless crime. It is not like they held up somebody or socked them over the head with a tire iron. In fact, these four suspects should be applauded for their resourcefulness and intelligence. I am not sure that most of us would have thought of it. I am sure that the judge will go easy on them. Judge Sotomayor would for sure.

[John_Merritt]

Zara:

You sound like a girlfriend for one of the above suspects? You are calloused beyond belief. I am sure you would be saying the same thing if it was one of your loved ones who was discarded like trash. Sleep well. I hope you have nightmares.

[speakinup22]

Going for personal best on being stupid aren't you. What about the people that survived them ?

I wouldn't go to the grave site and say that if I were you. You are liable to get a spade in the teeth. Then tell us how victimless the crime is.

[ToolMangler1]

Alzo Sprach Zarathustra, If I went into your home and removed everything you cared about threw them into the garbage and sold your house for 'My' profit, would you still call it a 'victimless crime?????

[leatherneck1954]

Obviously your comments on "Judge sotomayor" identifies you as a republican, so no surprise here since GOP is famous for avarice, greed, hypocrisy, and claiming to be moral superiors, but your comments here simply prove the fact most republicans lack morality which most decent human beings would be horrified at this desecration of the dead, not a surprise since the GOP ruins us all in the last 8 years of their trickly down theory, grave robbers and GOP do have this in common!

[IrishWench01]

"A real horror story"? It amazes me to see the outrage over the bodies of the long buried. Where is the outrage of our military losing their limbs, minds and lives almost daily? Where is that outrage, frustration and compassion? And what of the atrocities commited on the living?

Of course the desecration of sacred burial grounds is not a new atrocity. Just ask our early settlers or the Native Americans. Well, that is if you can find their burial site.

[taxchurches]

Obviously this comment was intended to shock and offend, but at the same time, there is a grain of truth in it. The recent idiocy with Michael Jackson's corpse is a prime example of America's death fetish. Funerals are a disgusting, superstitious practice and cemeteries are an obsolete waste of space.

[november20]

You are obviously one of those who don't know the difference between moral and immoral. It clearly illustrates a lack of civility and decency. You are quite correct in that most of us would not have thought comitting such an act because most of us simply don't intertain your level of indecency. You may crawl back under your rock now!