Headstones vandalized in Clovis

CLOVIS - Frank Urioste visited Clovis' Mission Garden of Memories on Friday to pay respects. What he saw there was anything but respectful.

Vandals had damaged nearly a dozen headstones.

"We bury our loved ones and we want them to be left alone," Urioste said, "and this happens."

He'd gone with his wife to put flowers on her father's grave.

Everything was fine with his father-in-law's gravesite, but half a dozen others nearby were in disarray. Urioste posted a video of his disappointing discovery on Facebook.

"They were all flipped, tipped over like a truck or car had ran into them," Urioste said. "When we were leaving, we went to the other corner and there were five more tipped over."

There was no indication of how or when the gravestones came to be damaged. Except for their proximity to each other, the damaged headstones had no apparent connection.

Rodney Muffley, who maintains the cemetery, said he was returning from a holiday trip when he heard the news and planned to check on the cemetery Saturday afternoon. In such instances, he usually cleans up the area and files a police report, with the level of felony depending on the number of headstones damage and the depth of the damage. He also works with families on any fixes that need to be made to the gravesites.

A group of community members came to the cemetery and put the headstones back in their rightful spots, and Urioste said he was in contact with Muffley about the vandalism.

"There used to be a gate up there, but it was taken down because trash accumulated there," Urioste said. "I think we need to put a gate back up."

Muffley said he's seen a drop in vandalism since removing the gates, and the instances of vandalism that do happen are easier to spot.