Family May Be Allowed Burial At Neverland

The family of Michael Jackson has been told by state officials that it may be possible to bury the entertainer at the Neverland Valley Ranch - if the county gives the green light.

Officials with Santa Barbara County, the site of the ranch, said Thursday that they have not yet been approached, and it was not clear whether the family had decided to pursue that option. But a lawyer from the Jackson family contacted state officials recently about possibly burying Michael Jackson at the ranch that once was his home, said Amanda Fulkerson of California's State and Consumer Services Agency.

To bury someone on private land in California is a two-step process:

First, a certificate of authority is needed from the state Cemetery and Funeral Bureau which is easily obtainable by filling out a two-page application and paying $400.
Next, the family needs approval from the county.

No one from the Jackson family has contacted county authorities yet, said county spokesman William Boyer.

"We have had no formal application either from the Jackson family or from the property owner. At that point, we would review the application and make a determination."

Boyer said Santa Barbara county has never been approached about burial on private land. But California has had burials outside cemeteries, most notably that of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan at his presidential library in Ventura County's Simi Valley.

Source: MJFC / CNN