Abuse of the Bereaved?

Abuse of the Bereaved?

If the condition of the grounds raised alarm, even more troubling has been the blatant disregard—and at times, open aggression—shown by the new owners and staff toward families who come to mourn. Under Howze Jr., Lakeside has been staffed with unqualified and often combative friends and relatives. These individuals refer to the cemetery as their “property” and routinely berate visitors without consequence.

On Mother’s Day 2025, a grieving mother visiting her child’s grave states she was verbally harassed and intimidated by a maintenance worker, Christopher James. As she walked back from her child's grave to her parked car, the staff member shouted, “What the fck is wrong with you?!”—apparently upset she had parked near his maintenance truck. He then hurled misogynistic and homophobic slurs, calling her a “d*ke” and a “c*nt.” Frightened, she called Erie Police, but officers reportedly dismissed her complaint and treated both parties as equally at fault. No charges were filed, despite behavior that appeared to meet the threshold for criminal harassment or disorderly conduct under Pennsylvania law. The mother remains deeply distressed, fears returning to Lakeside, and hopes to disinter her child as soon as she can afford it.

Weeks later, tensions boiled over again. A retired Air Force veteran visiting with his wife to honor family military service was appalled by the cemetery’s unkempt appearance. When he asked the same worker, Christopher James, why the grounds hadn’t been prepared, he was told, “If you don’t like it, f*cking do it yourself.” When the veteran asked to speak with the manager, he was approached by Tyrone Howze, Howze Jr.’s uncle, who claimed ownership, shoved him, and ordered him off the property. When the veteran stood his ground, Tyrone swung at him. The worker joined in, and soon multiple family members—including Howze Jr.’s sister, Marissa—tackled, kicked, and struck the veteran.

Physically vulnerable and outnumbered, the veteran called to his wife for his legally owned firearm. Although she could not respond, the mention of the gun caused the attackers to back off. The veteran called 9-1-1, and during the call, Howze Jr. reportedly arrived with his own gun, threatened the veteran, and likewise asserted the cemetery was his “property.” Police confiscated weapons from both parties, but citing conflicting accounts, charged the veteran, Tyrone Howze, and the worker—while Howze Jr. and Marissa were not charged. The veteran never got to lay his flowers that day, which may have been his final Memorial Day and faced legal proceedings while battling end-stage cancer.

Both the grieving mother and the veteran now fear that their loved ones’ graves—or, in the veteran’s case, his own future resting place—could be desecrated in retaliation. Guests now report armed men patrolling the grounds. What was once a place of solace has become a site of intimidation, where grieving families worry not only for their own safety but also for the dignity of loved ones buried at Lakeside. This is a far cry from the picnic spot Lakeside's original founders envisioned. 

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