A cemetery at Eden Memorial Park, in Mission Hills, California recently settled a lawsuit filed by families of the remains that were allegedly desecrated, said CNN. According to the lawsuit filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, Service Corporation International, or SCI, who owned Eden Memorial, agreed to settle the claims lodged by over 25,000 Jewish families for $80.5 million.
The lawsuit claimed that employees at Eden memorial secretly desecrated the remains of deceased individuals at the park, often for the purpose of making room to admit new remains.
CNN said that the court had given preliminary approval to settle the lawsuit on Thursday.
The news agency said that this was not the first time the cemetery owner had faced allegations of moving mass graves to accommodate new ones for its businesses. Service Corporation International had also settled a lawsuit filed against them by families of individuals whose remains lie at Menorah Gardens in Florida for $100 million. Service Corporation International reportedly shelled out $14 million to settle with the Florida state attorney's office in relation to the lawsuit filed by affected families of Menorah Garden victims. The Washington Post also said that a funeral home operated by Service Corporation International was also involved was found responsible for allowing remains of veterans for burial at Arlington National Cemetery to rot in garages and hallways.
In a statement, lead attorney Michael Avenatti for the plaintiffs said, "This settlement is a testament to the thousands of Jewish families who have been traumatized because of the conduct of Eden Memorial Park and SCI. We have been honored to represent these families and as promised nearly five years ago, we did not rest until truth prevailed. We are pleased with the settlement and are proud that this lawsuit resulted in SCI immediately changing its business practices at Eden to ensure this never happens to another family again."
