Re Crawley Green Road Cemetery, Luton - The Case of the Re-buried Husband

Re Crawley Green Road Cemetery, Luton,
[2001] H.R.L.R. 21
Consistory Court of St Albans
2 December 2000

Brief Summary:
The petitioner sought to have her husband's body exhumed, cremated and re-buried in non-consecrated grounds, which would be more in keeping with the petitioner's (and her husband's) humanist beliefs.

The Facts:
The ashes of the petitioner's husband were buried in a consecrated position in Crawley Green Road Cemetery, Luton. The funeral ceremony had been humanist one because neither the deceased nor his wife had any Christian allegiance.  The petitioner had been unaware that the plot was consecrated. Following the funeral, the petitioner moved from Luton and was forced to travel in order to visit her husband's grave. The petition requested that the remains be reinterred at a location closer to her present home and in a manner compatible with her religious beliefs.

Human Rights Argument:
The petitioner argued that her husband was originally buried in a manner that she found at odds with the family's humanist beliefs.  Requiring him to remain there violated her Article 9 right to manifest her religion or beliefs.  The government argued that burying her husband's ashes in non-consecrated ground would offend the religious beliefs of Christians and those beliefs should be balanced against the petitioner's.

The Holding:
The petitioner has the right "to remove her husband's ashes from a place where their burial are, at least in her eyes, hypocritical and contrary to her humanist beliefs."  Humanist beliefs are entitled to the same Article 9 protection as more conventional religions.  Moreover, the fact that Christians might be upset by the burial in non-consecrated grounds does not outweigh her concerns.  The court ordered the body exhumed. 

Villain?
A humanist widow who wants her husband buried in a manner that reflected his beliefs and to be able to visit her husband's grave more easily?  No villain here.