Legal Definitions - exhumation

Exhumation refers to the legal process of digging up and removing something that has been buried in the ground, most commonly a human body or remains, from its place of burial.

Here are some examples of when exhumation might occur:

• Criminal Investigation: Years after a murder case went cold, new forensic technology emerges. Prosecutors obtain a court order for the exhumation of the victim's body to collect additional DNA evidence or examine the remains for previously undetected clues. The act of retrieving the body from its grave for this investigative purpose is an exhumation.

• Family Relocation: A family decides to move their deceased grandmother's remains from an old, distant cemetery to a new family plot in a cemetery closer to where they now live. They apply for and receive the necessary legal permits to disinter the remains. The process of uncovering and removing the casket from its original burial site constitutes an exhumation.

• Public Works Project: A city plans to expand a major highway, and the proposed route passes directly through a historic, disused cemetery. To allow for the construction, the city obtains legal authorization to exhume all the graves within the affected area, relocating the remains to a new, designated burial ground. This large-scale removal of buried individuals for a public project is an example of exhumation.