A grieving Santa Ana couple faced a nightmare sequence of blunders at their infant son’s funeral—including a three-hour delay, wrong-sized vaults, and a plan to unearth the baby the next day, according to a lawsuit opening in court Thursday.

William Gutierrez and Jacqueline Bahena filed a civil suit against Fairhaven Park and Mortuary four years after the tragic March 2022 service for their two-month-old son, Zayid.

The couple had carefully chosen a specific plot for their baby. But when they arrived on the day of the service, cemetery staff dropped a bombshell: workers hit concrete while digging and could not open the grave, the suit claims.

Unwilling to turn away guests who had taken time off work, the devastated parents agreed to a backup plot. As the family and a hired mariachi band waited, staff scrambled to dig a new hole.

Then came another disaster.

When workers brought out the burial vault, it was the wrong size for the baby’s casket, the filing states. The mariachi band was forced to leave as the delay dragged on.

Staff brought out a second vault—only for everyone to realize it was also the wrong size.

With the service delayed by three hours, Fairhaven staff made a shocking proposal: bury the infant without a vault and dig him back up the next day to pour concrete over the casket, according to court documents.

Exhausted, sickened, and desperate to end the ordeal, the parents agreed. The funeral, originally set for 10:30 a.m., did not take place until 2:00 p.m., forcing most guests to leave for work without saying goodbye.

To cap off the horror, staff forgot to arrange a planned ceremonial bird release, causing another delay until nearly 3:00 p.m., the suit alleges.

The infant’s final reburial did not happen until weeks later.