The Seanachai: Greetings from Geocaching.com,
It has been brought to my attention that this cache placement is in or near a cemetery and as such, should not have been published at this location. It is a violation of Tennessee state law to "play at any game or amusement" in a cemetery. Any geocaches that you may have found in the past inside or near Tennessee cemeteries were placed before this ban took effect and were "grandfathered in" under the old guidelines.
Here is the relevant statue concerning caches in cemeteries, in this case it is clear that geocaching is considered a game or amusement.
Tennessee Cemetery & Burial Site Laws
Statutory Laws
(Tennessee Code Annotated)
Title 46-1-313. Trespass on or injury to cemetery property — Interference with processions or religious exercises — Penalty. —
(a) No person shall willfully destroy, deface, or injure any monument, tomb, gravestone, or other structure placed in the cemetery, or any roadway, walk, fence or enclosure in or around the cemetery, or injure any tree, plant or shrub, or hunt or shoot, play at any game or amusement, or loiter for lascivious or lewd purposes in the cemetery, or interfere, by words or actions, with any funeral procession or any religious exercises.
(b) (1) A violation of this section is a Class E felony.
(2) Following conviction of a person for violating subsection (a), evidence of damages sustained as a result of the violation shall be presented to the jury, which shall ascertain the total amount of the damages. The court shall then render judgment in that amount against the offender in favor of the cemetery and/or the other aggrieved parties and shall order the offender to make full restitution for the damages. Execution of the judgment shall issue as in other civil cases. The order of restitution shall be in addition to other sanctions imposed pursuant to subdivision (b)(1).
Because of the delicate nature of cemetery caches within Tennessee it has long been our policy to not publish caches that fall within 528 feet of a cemetery as this one clearly does. There are several groups currently lobbying for the overturn of this law, and it has been established that this "buffer zone" is necessary during the negotiation process. I am as frustrated by this law as anyone, but as long as it remains on the books, we must abide by it. In light of this, I am sorry but this cache must be archived.
If you would like to relocate this cache at least 528 feet away from the cemetery, please let me know and, if possible, I will unarchive the listing. I apologize once again for not discovering this issue during the review process, I will investigate the issue and take steps to make sure that I do not make this error again.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation,
The Seanachai
Geocaching.com Volunteer Cache Reviewer for Tennessee