Woman Upset By Moving Of Family Members' Graves

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) -- A local woman is upset because the graves of 12 of her family members will be moved.

St. Mary's Cemetery says they're trying to give respect to 8,000 unnamed people buried there. But family members say the opposite is true, and they're speaking out about it.

"They're disturbing the dead, they're disturbing me," said Felipa Carranza, a woman who says she's upset at the cemetery. She's begging for her family to be left alone.

"That's my family and that's their resting place," she said.

Twelve of Carranza's family members, including brothers and sisters, are buried at what was once a county cemetery for those who could not afford a plot.

"That's the only resting place they could afford," she said.

After decades of rest, crews have taken on the task of digging up her family and more than 8,000 others from unmarked graves to move them to another part of the cemetery.

"I don't think its right for anyone…for anyone once they're buried to pick them up again," said Carranza.

Work has begun at the place where her family members were laid to rest.

"We're continuing to treat people with respect," said Sacramento diocese spokesman Kevin Eckery.

Eckery says the project to exhume the bodies is meant to give loved ones like Carranza's more respect with a new memorial that includes the names of the dead. Eckery says the new plans are more respectful for the deceased.

"Well right now they're buried in a haphazard way. Again, it's in a fairly disrespectful manner," said Eckery.

Eckery is referring to bodies not only in unmarked graves, but ones that are buried for eternity in shallow plots. Graves will now have their own space, but Carranza says disturbing her family, even with the best intentions, is not right.

"I know he wouldn't go dig up his mother. None of them would dig up their parents," said Carrannza.

Eckery says all of the remains are being moved by hand and reinterred by the end of the day. He also provided us with a deed from the county making what they're doing legal.