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Posted on 08/12/2010 2:38:42 PM PDT by NYer
Can the government restrict the monks of St. Joseph’s Abbey in Saint Benedict, La., from building boxes?
Yes, says the state, if those boxes are for the deceased.
In 2007, the monks at St. Joseph’s Abbey started St. Joseph Woodworks for the purpose of building simple wooden caskets as a means of supporting themselves. Monks in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Minnesota have been in the casket-making business for years.
Before they were able to sell even a single casket, the Louisiana State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors told them that their sale of caskets violated state law, which says that you cannot sell “funeral merchandise” unless you’re a licensed funeral director. Were the monks to sell their caskets, they would risk both fines and imprisonment.
In order to sell caskets legally, the monks would have to apprentice at a licensed funeral home for a year, take a funeral industry test, and convert their monastery into a “funeral establishment,” installing equipment for embalming.
“We are not a wealthy monastery, and we want to sell our plain wooden caskets to pay for food, health care, and the education of our monks, said Abbot Justin Brown.
This morning, the Arlington, Va.-based Institute for Justice is holding a press conference on the front steps of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on behalf of the monks. They are announcing a federal lawsuit to fight against the state funeral board’s attempt to shut down their casket-making business.
“A casket is just a box and you do not even need one for burial,” said Institute for Justice senior attorney Scott Bullock. “There is no legitimate health or safety reason to license casket sellers.”
The Institute for Justice says that the only reason the state of Louisiana is preventing the Abbey from selling its caskets is to protect the profits of the state’s funeral directors.
“Economic liberty is a constitutional right that matters to everyone, even monks,” said Jeff Rowes, senior attorney with the Institute for Justice.
“The monks’ story is just one example of a national problem in which industry cartels use government power to protect themselves from competition,” said Chip Mellor, president and general counsel of the Institute for Justice. “Protecting economic liberty and ending government-enforced cartels requires judicial engagement – a willingness by the courts to confront what is often really going on when the government enacts licensing laws supposedly to protect the public.”
There’s a great video overview of the case go here. To learn more, visit the Institute for Justice’s website.
There seems to be no length to which government will not go to control the iives of private citizens.
Sounds like that’s in conflict with Federal Law:
According to the Funeral Rule:
you have the right to choose the funeral goods and services you want (with some exceptions).
the funeral provider must state this right in writing on the general price list.
if state or local law requires you to buy any particular item, the funeral provider must disclose it on the price list, with a reference to the specific law.
the funeral provider may not refuse, or charge a fee, to handle a casket you bought elsewhere.
a funeral provider that offers cremations must make alternative containers available.
Funerals: A Consumer Guide
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/products/pro19.shtm
We do seem to be over constrained by the laws. Multitudinous they are, such that no one individual can know them all.
This is likely about the state protecting unions and attempting to monopolize and or protect businesses willing to join “associations”.
It’s likely nothing more than legal government shakedown.
The basic casket that a funeral home sells for about $5500 wholesales for around $600.
Guess who owns the funeral homes in LA?
One things Leftists love to do is set up a system so the profits are a sure thing.
I’m glad IJ is on this.
If they don’t fix this mess soon, people won’t be able to die.
Sell ‘em as avant-garde coffee tables.
in the UK you can get a wicker casket if you like
What are you implying?
As I said: “Check who owns the funeral homes in LA”
Then check ou who owns the funera homes nationwide....
crazy non-sense
The funeral home industry has undergone a lot of consolidation in the past 20 years. In LA and elsewhere, most funeral homes serving the general public are increasingly owned by publicly-owned national chains. Homes that traditionally serve the black community are frequently held by more local, family-controlled concerns.
There is nothing special about Louisiana in this regard.
Regards,
GtG
Simple. Give them away. Put a “donation kitty” by the door.
Bravo for the Institute of Justice!
However, if you need a casket just shop online at Costco.
Link to caskets: http://www.costco.com/Common/Search.aspx?whse=BC&topnav=&search=casket&N=0&Ntt=casket&cm_re=1_en-_-Top_Left_Nav-_-Top_search&lang=en-US
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