Could You Legally Bury Someone in Your Backyard?

Home burials are largely a thing of the past, but they're perfectly legal in most states -- once you check a few boxes. Learn how home burials work in this episode of BrainStuff.

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to brain Stuff from How Stuff Works, Hi brain Stuff,
Lauren vogelbam here. A century ago, when most Americans lived
on farms or a family land passed through the generations,
it made perfect sense to bury loved ones close to home.
But if you bring up the subject of a backyard
burial today, get ready for some strange looks. With the

(00:22):
rising popularity of natural burials in both conventional and eco
friendly or green cemeteries, it's fair to ask what's stopping
us from bringing the burial process back home. We were
morbidly curious about what it would take, so we reached
out to Lee Webster, president of the National Home Funeral Alliance,
to learn about the legal and practical considerations you should
take when planning a home burial. Home burials are completely legal,

(00:46):
or at least not explicitly forbidden in every state except California, Indiana, Washington,
and the District of Columbia. In d C. It's a
space issue, as in there is no space in California.
It's a different kind of real estate problem. The concern
is that future landowners could subdivide parcels and accidentally dig
up undisclosed graves. According to California law, anyone who deposits

(01:09):
or disposes of any human remains in any place except
a cemetery is guilty of a misdemeanor and could face
jail time or a fine up to ten tho dollars.
Even if your state allows home burials, it would be
wise to check with your local zoning board or planning
commission before digging. In some states and individual counties have
rules about the minimum distance the burial plot needs to

(01:29):
be from resources like bodies of water, electrical lines, other buildings,
and roads. Those distances are known as setbacks. In New Hampshire,
for example, plots need to be at least fifty feet
that's fifteen meters away from a known water source, and
twice that far from any buildings. One result of these
zonning laws is that it's all but impossible to bury
someone in a suburban backyard. There simply isn't enough space

(01:52):
on most properties to manage the setback restrictions, even if
you wouldn't freak out the neighbors, which brings up an
important consideration property value. As our funeral expert Webster said,
having dead bodies on your property isn't exactly a boon
where real estate is concerned. If you choose to bury
a loved one on your land, you should think of
the land as a multigenerational investment, because many folks simply

(02:15):
won't want a piece of property with that kind of history.
But if you own a large enough piece of land
away from roads and nosy neighbors, and if you don't
plan on moving anytime soon, you're free to pick out
a burial plot. A few tips, choose a location far
from any streams or rivers because they can erode and
meander over time, which would put the loved ones remains

(02:35):
at risk. Pick a high point on the property that's
far from the water table, and if possible, choose the
location as part of a long term land conservation plan
to preserve the space for future generations. Once you pick
a location, you will be required to create a special
easement in the deed for your property, and easement provides
for future public access to the grave site. You don't

(02:57):
have to provide any physical access route like a path
or ode, just to clause in the deed identifying the
location of the burial plot. After your loved one passes away,
the next of kin has the legal right and responsibility
to handle all of the funeral arrangements. However, there are
ten states in which a funeral director must be hired
in order to file the death certificate or in some cases,

(03:17):
remove the body from the hospital. The most restrictive rules
are in New York and Louisiana, where a licensed funeral
director must oversee just about anything concerning the body or
the funeral itself. In most cases, the family has the
right to care for the body at home. If the
burial is performed within twenty four hours of death, you
can skip any requirements for refrigeration or embalming after twenty

(03:38):
four hours. Some states insist on a method of preservation,
particularly if the person died of an infectious disease. The
aforementioned National Home Funeral Alliance lists states individual rules on
their website. If you don't hire a funeral director, it's
the family's responsibility to fill out and file the death certificate.
The doctors or hospice staff will handle the medical portion,
but you need to fill in a few personal details.

(04:00):
The trickier part can be filing the certificate, which usually
happens at a country clerk or registrar's office. If it's
a Saturday or holiday, or simply after five o'clock, you'll
have to wait funeral directors. By the way, it can
file electronically. Seven. The good news, says Webster, is that
there are no funeral police. No one's going to come
after you if you miss by a few hours. It's

(04:20):
just a formality that has to be taken care of
when it comes to the actual burial. Several states require
a minimum depth for the body, notes Webster. Only New
Mexico requires the classic six feet or one point eight meters,
and a New Jersey sets the depth at four ft
or one point two meters. In most other circumstances, there
only needs to be between eighteen and thirty inches that's
forty five to seventy six cimes of soil between the

(04:41):
top of the body and the surface. Even this depth
helps speed decomposition and ensures that the body is well
beyond the smell barrier and therefore safe from scavenging animals. Interestingly,
you don't have to create any kind of official family
cemetery before burying a body on your property. Webster explains
it works a reverse. Essentially, if you put a dead

(05:02):
body on a piece of property, it becomes a cemetery.
This has to do with anti desecration law and cemetery
law that goes way back to Roman times. Once the
body is laid to rest, your last legal responsibility is
to notify your local semetary trustees or commissioners on the
location of the grave. They'll file that information for the
public record, as with any other cemetery plot. If you're

(05:23):
interested in a home funeral for yourself or a loved one,
consider contacting a home funeral guide in your area. They
can help you navigate local burial laws and create a
positive and family centered end of life experience. Today's episode
was written by Dave Ruse and produced by Tristan McNeil.
For more on this and lots of other curious topics,

(05:45):
visit our home planet, how Stuff Works dot com.