Front Yard Grave Illegal, Alabama Forces James Davis To Exhume His Wife

A front yard grave is considered illegal in Alabama, so state officials have forced the husband James Davis to exhume his wife and cremate the body.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, the Eternal Flame at the JFK gravesite in the Arlington Cemetery was repaired recently although the Emigrant Flame actually went out.

James Davis has been fighting to keep his wife’s body buried in his front yard for several years now. Before she passed away in 2009, Mr. Davis promised Patsy Ruth Davis he’d bury her right outside of their log home.

Apparently, in Alabama having a front yard grave is not that uncommon and Mr. Davis doesn’t see why the state would consider it a problem:

“Good Lord, they’ve raised pigs in their yard, there’s horses out the road here … they’ve got other grave sites here all over the place. And there shouldn’t have been a problem.”

But city officials claimed the front yard grave was a problem because the home happens to be on a main street. A city attorney claims James Davis “said it was easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, and that’s what he did.” And after four years of fighting the Davis family in court the city has won, citing the front yard grave as an “illegal cemetery.” The case even went to the Alabama Supreme Court where the county judge’s decision was upheld.

So James Davis, his five children and some grandchildren stood by as contractors uplifted the concrete vault and casket containing Mrs. Davis. At one point one of the daughters burst into tears. Police were on hand just in case there was trouble but Mr. Davis had decided to give up the battle:

“I’m adjusting to what’s going on. I’ve come to the realization that in the end Mama winds up ashes anyway ’cause we all go back to dust.”

The Davis family plans on storing her remains in an urn they will keep inside the home.

Do you think James Davis should be allowed to keep a front yard grave on his own property?