STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The hand of a deceased woman that was discovered in North Mount Loretto State Forest in Pleasant Plains last week raises disturbing questions about the security of coffins buried without vaults at cemeteries on Staten Island.
The 63-year-old woman from Annadale, a devoted wife, mother and grandmother, was buried in 2011 at Resurrection Cemetery. Her grave on the west side of Sharrott Avenue, commonly referred to as the new section, apparently was disturbed when the plot next to her was opened to bury a 96-year-old woman in February.
The 63-year-old woman’s coffin was not encased in a vault, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation. Such enclosures, which are also commonly referred to as grave liners, are not required by law.
Resurrection is part of Calvary and Allied Cemeteries, which is overseen by the Trustees of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan.
Mary Ellen Gerrity, executive director of the Trustees of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, confirmed in an email to the Advance/SILive.com that vaults are not required for coffins that are buried in the ground at Resurrection.
“I cannot comment on the personal details of the burial as that is the family’s privileged and confidential information,” Gerrity said. “The cemetery is still investigating precisely what transpired, and what changes, if any, might be required.”
Resurrection Cemetery issued the following statement after the incident:
“We have been informed that the remains of an individual who was buried at Resurrection Cemetery were disturbed, and some portions of those remains were discovered at some distance from the cemetery. While at this point we do not know what transpired, we take this matter with great seriousness and will conduct an investigation, as well as cooperate in any investigation that civil authorities might undertake. In the meanwhile, the remains will be respectfully reinterred as soon as possible, and we extend to the affected family our deep and prayerful regret for the sorrow that this has undoubtedly caused them.”
John Vincent Scala of the funeral home that bears his name in Eltingville noted in his experience Resurrection has always shown care during burials.
“Resurrection Cemetery is very, very strict about their burials,” Scalia said during an interview with the Advance/SILive.com. “I’m sure from the manager right down to the people who are in charge of the openings that they try to do everything right. There’s no doubt about it, better than most.”
While there are no government regulations requiring the use of vaults on Staten Island, some cemeteries in our borough do require those containers.
Scalia recommended that they be used as an extra layer of protection for the body of a loved one.
“At our funeral home, we always suggest that they spend less money on a casket and that they get even a minimum type of vault,” he said.
Scalia said that a vault is “used to protect the casket from deteriorating” and also to keep the cemetery grounds level by deterring sinkage.
A vault helps to minimize the potential damage from the forces of nature such as seeping rainwater and pressure from the weight of soil on the coffin. Materials used to make the coffin also could deter erosion with strong woods such as oak more likely to withstand the test of time, Scalia said.
TYPES OF ENCLOSURES
Most people on Staten Island choose enclosures made from cement that can weigh several hundred pounds and sometimes are fortified with copper or plastic. A wooden container sometimes is used to encase a coffin. The various enclosures typically have seals or secure lids.
The state Division of Cemeteries does not regulate cemeteries belonging to religious corporations and has no jurisdiction in the incident involving the 63-year-old woman, according to sources.
The State of New York website provides the following guidance about these containers:
“A cemetery corporation may not compel the use of any particular outer enclosure, except that a cemetery may require the use of a concrete burial vault, or, at the option of the customer, a concrete grave liner under the following conditions and restrictions: The customer must have purchased the lot after January 1, 1985;
“The requirement must be stated prominently in writing and a written statement must be given to the customer in advance of the signing of the agreement to lot purchase a grave or lot;
“A lot owner may purchase the grave liner from any source including the cemetery.
“A cemetery may not sell burial vaults. Should a lot owner object to the use of the required concrete vault or grave liner at the time of interment based upon religious belief, the cemetery must, without question, cancel the requirement; provided, however, that the cemetery may impose at the time of interment a reasonable fee for the periodic refilling of the grave.”
DISTURBING DISCOVERY PROMPTS SEARCH OF FOREST
Authorities spent days searching the forest after the woman’s partially-decomposed right hand was discovered by a passerby on the afternoon of March 9 in the state park at Amboy and Cunningham roads.
A 42-year-old man was walking his dog at that location when the pet started sniffing and scratching the ground and the man saw the hand, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.
The park was reopened to the public on that Saturday, but a large section of the wooded area remained marked off with caution tape. Some of the blocked area was along the blue trail used by hikers and other nature enthusiasts. A portion of that foot trail extends from a blocked asphalt road that traverses the park and is accessed from a parking lot on Amboy Road. Portable NYPD lights were positioned on the road.
A large orange cone, perhaps used as an evidence marker, was placed inside a roped off area near the blue trail. While most of the forest floor was blanketed with fallen leaves, soil could be seen near the orange cone and other areas apparently cleared and searched by authorities.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation referred the Advance/SILive to the NYPD as the lead investigating authority.
WHAT HAPPENED
According to police, a fingerprint analysis of a decomposed hand that was discovered in the wooded area determined that it belonged to the woman who died in 2011.
On Feb. 27, the plot next to the woman’s grave was excavated for a new burial. Police believe that the equipment used to excavate the neighboring grave damaged the casket and caused the woman’s hand to somehow be severed from her body.
Ad Choices