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Torts/Personal Injury

Sep. 21, 2026

Jury finds mortuary negligent in botched infant burial, awards no damages

Orange County jurors found Fairhaven Park and Mortuary negligent after an infant's burial was marred by a relocated grave, hours of delays and an undersized vault, but concluded his parents were not entitled to damages.

Jurors found Fairhaven Park and Mortuary negligent in the botched burial of a 2-month-old boy but awarded his parents no damages after a graveside service disrupted by a relocated plot, hours of delay and a vault too small for the casket.

The defense verdict in William Gutierrez and Jacqueline Bahena's suit against the Santa Ana Memorial Park turned on whether Fairhaven's handling of the burial amounted to outrageous conduct and caused severe emotional distress.

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