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Meridian Cemetery Owner’s Operations Restricted
Meridian, Miss.—A Lauderdale County Chancery Court judge enjoined certain operations at Magnolia Cemetery and Meridian Memorial Park during the pendency of a lawsuit filed by Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann.
Secretary Hosemann filed a lawsuit on June 28, 2016, alleging the owner of the Cemetery and Memorial Park, William E. Arlinghaus, failed to pay into a required trust a percentage of customer payments for ground burial and mausoleum sales as required by statute. The chancery court granted Secretary Hosemann’s motion for a temporary restraining order the same day the lawsuit was filed.
Secretary Hosemann then sought a preliminary injunction, which was granted by Chancery Judge Jerry Mason on August 23, 2016. The preliminary injunction requires Arlinghaus and his businesses to:
· Halt all future “pre-need” sales of burial spaces. “At-need” sales of burial spaces for immediate burials will still be allowed;
· Halt all pre-need sales of burial goods and services;
· Cease withdrawing, issuing drafts, making payments by check, or transferring any monies in any of the trust or bank accounts of the businesses;
· Preserve all business and banking records; and
· Report weekly collections for at-need sales and services to the Secretary of State’s Office each Friday.
“It may take some time for this lawsuit to come to a conclusion,” Secretary Hosemann said. “This injunction protects Mississippians by ensuring funds which belong in the trust are accounted for while litigation is ongoing.”
The day-to-day maintenance of Magnolia Cemetery and Meridian Memorial Park remain the responsibility of the businesses and Arlinghaus. A hearing on the merits of Secretary Hosemann’s motion for Appointment of a Receiver, which would appoint the Secretary of State receiver of the Cemetery and Memorial Park, is scheduled for January 10-11, 2017.
Mississippi Code Section 41-43-37(1) requires perpetual care cemeteries to remit fifteen percent (15%) of all ground burial sales and five percent (5%) of all mausoleum and niche sales to an irrevocable perpetual care trust. These amounts are set aside and safeguarded by a trustee for the long-term care, maintenance, and upkeep of cemetery property for current and future generations.
Recent examinations by the Regulation and Enforcement Division of the Secretary of State’s Office revealed Arlinghaus failed to remit $33,349.83 to the trust through October 2015. Arlinghaus has owned Magnolia Cemetery and Meridian Memorial Park since November 2011. The Secretary of State’s Office has also received numerous consumer complaints alleging maintenance neglect of the property and undelivered memorial markers paid for by customers.
Congressman G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery is interred in the Magnolia Cemetery, along with numerous Meridian families.
