(A) Pursuant to G.S. § 14-148, it is unlawful to willfully:
(1) Throw, place, or put any refuse, garbage, or trash in, or on, any cemetery;
(2) Take away, disturb, vandalize, destroy, or change the location of any stone, brick, iron, or other material, or fence enclosing a cemetery, without authorization of law or consent of the town, or in the case of cemeteries not own, and/or operated, by the town, the surviving spouse, or next of kin of the deceased; and/or
(3) Take away, disturb, vandalize, destroy, or tamper with any shrubbery, flowers, plants, or other articles planted, or placed, within any cemetery to designate where human remains are interred, or to preserve, and perpetuate, the memory and name of any person, without authorization of law, or the consent of the surviving spouse or next of kin.
(B) The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
(1) Ordinary maintenance, and care, of a cemetery by the owner, caretaker, or other person acting to facilitate cemetery operations by keeping the cemetery free from accumulated debris, or other signs of neglect; or
(2) A professional archaeologist, as defined in G.S. § 70-28(4), acting pursuant to the provisions of G.S. Chapter 70, Article 3.
(C) Violation of this section is a Class I felony if the damage caused by the violation is $1,000 or more. Any other violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Penalty, see § 1-111