Plain English Breakdown
The official text does not specify an exact effective date for this law.
Marissa's Law: Changing Who Controls Funeral Plans
This law changes the rules so that funeral directors must skip certain people when deciding who controls a deceased person's remains if those people had restraining orders for domestic violence or were found unfit parents by a court.
What This Bill Does
- Skips giving control of remains to someone with a restraining order for domestic violence against the deceased at the time of death.
- Skips giving control to a parent if a court determination shows it would not be in the best interests of the child who died.
- Moves the right to make decisions about burial or cremation to the next person on the legal priority list when these situations happen.
- Protects funeral directors and cemetery authorities from lawsuits, criminal charges, or license problems if they follow this new rule.
Who It Names or Affects
- Funeral directors
- Cemetery authorities
- Family members who might lose the right to control remains due to restraining orders or court findings about best interests
- Next of kin who may gain the right to make decisions
Terms To Know
- Disposition
- The decision about how to handle a dead body, such as burial or cremation.
- Restraining order
- A court rule that stops one person from contacting or harming another person.
- Next of kin
- The closest living family member who is next in line to make decisions after the first choice is skipped.
Limits and Unknowns
- This law only applies if the funeral director or cemetery authority knows about the restraining order or court documents.
- It does not change existing rules for people charged with murder, which already pass control to next of kin under current laws.