January 21, 2003, Introduced by Senators GARCIA, SANBORN, GOSCHKA, CROPSEY and
JACOBS and referred to the Committee on Health Policy.
A bill to amend 1953 PA 181, entitled
"An act relative to investigations in certain instances of the
causes of death within this state due to violence, negligence or
other act or omission of a criminal nature or to protect public
health; to provide for the taking of statements from injured
persons under certain circumstances; to abolish the office of
coroner and to create the office of county medical examiner in
certain counties; to prescribe the powers and duties of county
medical examiners; to prescribe penalties for violations of the
provisions of this act; and to prescribe a referendum thereon,"
by amending sections 2, 3, and 5 (MCL 52.202, 52.203, and
52.205), section 2 as amended by 2001 PA 26 and section 5 as
amended by 1980 PA 401, and by adding section 5b.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
1 Sec. 2. (1) A county medical examiner or deputy county
2 medical examiner shall investigate the cause and manner of death
3 under each of the following circumstances:
4 (a) The case of an individual who has died by violence.
5 (b) The case of an individual whose death was unexpected.
1 (c) The case of an individual who died without medical
2 attendance during the 48 hours immediately preceding the time of
3 death, unless the attending physician, if any, is able to
4 determine accurately the cause of death.
5 (d) The case of an individual who has died as the result of
6 an abortion, whether self-induced or otherwise.
7 (e) The case of an individual who has died as a result of 1
8 or more injuries suspected to have been caused by a fire.
9 (2) If a prisoner in a county or city jail dies while so
10 imprisoned, the county medical examiner or deputy county medical
11 examiner, upon being notified of the death of the prisoner, shall
12 examine the body of the deceased prisoner.
13 (3) In conducting an investigation under subsection (1) or
14 (2), a county medical examiner or deputy county medical examiner
15 may request the circuit court to issue a subpoena to produce
16 medical records, books, papers, documents, or other items related
17 to the death being investigated. The circuit court may punish
18 failure to obey a subpoena issued under this section as contempt
19 of court.
20 (4) Medical records, books, papers, documents, or other items
21 that a county medical examiner or deputy county medical examiner
22 obtains in conducting an investigation under this act, whether in
23 response to a subpoena or otherwise, are exempt from disclosure
24 under the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to
25 15.246.
26 Sec. 3. Any
physician and any person A physician, an
27 individual in charge of any
a hospital or institution other
1 health facility, or any
person another individual who shall
2 have has first knowledge of the 1 or
more of the following
3 shall immediately notify the county medical examiner or deputy
4 county medical examiner of that fact:
5 (a) The death of any
person an individual who shall have
6 died suddenly, unexpectedly, accidentally, violently, or as the
7 result of any suspicious
circumstances. , or
8 (b) An individual who died as a result of 1 or more injuries
9 suspected to have been caused by a fire.
10 (c) An individual who died without medical attendance during
11 the 48 hours prior to
immediately preceding the hour of death,
12 unless the attending physician, if any, is able to determine
13 accurately the cause of
death. , or in any
14 (d) A case of death due to what is commonly known as an
15 abortion, whether
self-induced or otherwise. , shall notify the
16 county medical
examiner or his deputy immediately of the death.
17 Sec. 5. (1) When
If a county medical examiner or deputy
18 county medical examiner
has notice that there has been found
19 within his or her
county or district the body of a
person an
20 individual who is
supposed to have come to his or her death may
21 have died in a manner as
indicated described in section 3 has
22 been found within the county medical examiner's geographical
23 jurisdiction, the county medical examiner or deputy county
24 medical examiner shall
take charge of the body. , and if, on
25 view of If after examining the body and personal
inquiry into
26 investigating the cause
and manner of the death , the county
27 medical examiner or deputy county medical examiner considers a
1 further examination
necessary, the county medical examiner or a
2 deputy he or she may cause the dead body to be
removed to the
3 public morgue. If the investigation is solely for the reason
4 only that the dead person individual had
no medical
5 attendance during the
48 hours before immediately preceding the
6 hour of death, and if the
dead person individual had chosen not
7 to have medical attendance because of his or her bona fide held
8 religious convictions,
removal shall is not be required
9 unless there is evidence
of other conditions stipulated
10 described in section 3.
If there is no public morgue, then the
11 body may be removed to a
private morgue as designated by the
12 county medical examiner has
designated or deputy county medical
13 examiner.
14 (2) The county medical examiner or deputy county medical
15 examiner may designate a person
medical examiner investigator
16 appointed pursuant to
under section 1a(2) to take charge of the
17 body, make pertinent inquiry, note the circumstances surrounding
18 the death, and, if considered necessary, cause the body to be
19 transported to the morgue for examination by the county medical
20 examiner or deputy county medical examiner. The county medical
21 examiner or deputy county medical examiner shall maintain a list
22 of persons medical
examiner investigators appointed pursuant
23 to under section 1a(2) and their qualifications,
which and
24 shall be filed file
the list with the local law enforcement
25 agencies. The person
A medical examiner investigator appointed
26 pursuant to under section 1a(2) shall not be an agent or
27 employee of any a
person or funeral establishment licensed
1 under Act No. 268 of
the Public Acts of 1949, as amended, being
2 sections 338.861 to
338.875 of the Michigan Compiled Laws the
3 occupational code, 1980 PA 299, MCL 339.101 to 339.2721, receive,
4 directly or indirectly, any
remuneration in connection with the
5 disposition of the body,
or make any funeral or burial
6 arrangements without
approval of the next of kin, if they are
7 found known, or the person individual
responsible for the
8 funeral expenses.
9 (3) The Except
as otherwise provided in section 5b, the
10 county medical examiner may perform or direct to be performed an
11 autopsy and shall carefully reduce or cause to be reduced to
12 writing every each
fact and circumstance tending to show the
13 condition of the body and the cause and manner of death,
14 together with and shall include in that writing the names
and
15 addresses of any
persons each individual present at the
16 autopsy. ,
which record he or she shall subscribe. The
17 individual performing the autopsy shall subscribe the writing
18 described in this subsection.
19 (4) Except as otherwise provided in section 5b, upon receipt
20 of a written request from a law enforcement agency or prosecuting
21 attorney investigating the death of an individual who died as a
22 result of 1 or more injuries suspected to have been caused by a
23 fire, the county medical examiner or his or her designee may
24 perform an autopsy upon the body of the individual. If the
25 county medical examiner does not perform or order the performance
26 of an autopsy pursuant to a request received under this
27 subsection, the county medical examiner shall explain to the
1 requester in writing within 48 hours of receiving the written
2 request for the autopsy that the death was directly caused by
3 fire and that an autopsy was not required to determine other
4 possible causes of death. If the law enforcement agency or
5 prosecuting attorney believes that an autopsy would contribute
6 materially to the investigation, the law enforcement agency or
7 prosecuting attorney may file a petition with a court of
8 competent jurisdiction for a review of the county medical
9 examiner's decision not to perform an autopsy. A law enforcement
10 agency or prosecuting attorney must file a petition under this
11 subsection within 24 hours after receiving oral or written notice
12 of the county medical examiner's decision not to perform the
13 autopsy or within 24 hours after the county medical examiner
14 fails to respond within the 48-hour time limit. The court in
15 which the petition is filed shall hold a hearing on the petition
16 within 48 hours after the petition is filed. If the court
17 determines that an autopsy would contribute materially to the
18 investigation, the court shall order the county medical examiner
19 to perform the autopsy immediately and to transmit the results of
20 the autopsy to the petitioner within 24 hours after the autopsy
21 is performed and all necessary tests are completed.
22 (5) (4)
The Except as provided in subsection (6), the
23 county medical examiner or deputy county medical examiner shall
24 ascertain the identity of
the deceased and notify immediately
25 and as compassionately as possible notify the next of kin of the
26 decedent's death and the
location of the body. except that such
27 (6) The notification described in subsection (5) is not
1 required if a person from
the state police or a county sheriff
2 department or a
township police department or a municipal police
3 department local law enforcement agency states to the county
4 medical examiner that the notification has already occurred. The
5 county medical examiner may conduct an autopsy under subsection
6 (3) if he or she determines that an autopsy reasonably appears to
7 be required pursuant to
law. After Except as otherwise
8 provided in section 5b, after the county medical examiner or a
9 deputy or a person an individual from the state police or a
10 county sheriff
department or a township police department or a
11 municipal police
department local law enforcement
agency has
12 made diligent effort to
locate and notify the next of kin, he or
13 she the county medical examiner may order and
conduct the
14 autopsy with or without the consent of the next of kin of the
15 deceased.
16 (7) (5) The
county medical examiner or a his or her
17 deputy shall keep a written record of the efforts to locate and
18 notify the next of kin for a period of 1 year from the date of
19 the autopsy. The
county medical examiner shall, after any
20 After a required examination or autopsy, the county medical
21 examiner shall promptly deliver or return the body to relatives
22 or representatives of the
deceased. or, if If there are no
23 relatives or representatives of the deceased known to the county
24 medical examiner, he or
she may cause the body to be decently
25 buried , except that
the medical examiner pursuant to law, but
26 may retain, as long as may
be he or she determines necessary,
27 any a portion of the body believed by the county
medical
1 examiner to be necessary
for the detection of any a crime.
2 Sec. 5b. (1) Subject to subsection (2), a county medical
3 examiner or deputy county medical examiner shall not perform an
4 autopsy on the body of a deceased person if a next of kin of the
5 deceased person informs the county medical examiner or deputy
6 county medical examiner that an autopsy would be contrary to the
7 deceased person's religious beliefs.
8 (2) A county medical examiner or deputy county medical
9 examiner may perform an autopsy under the circumstances described
10 in subsection (1) if the county medical examiner or deputy county
11 medical examiner determines that there is a compelling public
12 necessity for the autopsy. If the county medical examiner or
13 deputy county medical examiner determines that there is a
14 compelling public necessity for the autopsy, he or she shall not
15 perform the autopsy for a period of 24 hours after making the
16 determination of compelling public necessity. A compelling
17 public necessity exists for the purposes of this section if
18 either of the following circumstances exists:
19 (a) An autopsy is necessary for the conduct of a criminal
20 investigation by a law enforcement agency.
21 (b) An autopsy is necessary to determine the cause of the
22 deceased person's death in order to protect against an immediate
23 and substantial threat to the public health.
24 (3) During the 24-hour period described in subsection (2), a
25 next of kin described in subsection (1) may petition a court of
26 competent jurisdiction to enjoin the autopsy. The next of kin
27 shall inform the county medical examiner or deputy county medical
1 examiner in writing of the petition. The court in which the
2 petition is filed shall conduct a hearing on the matter within 48
3 hours of the filing of the petition. If the court finds that
4 there is a compelling public necessity, the court shall allow the
5 county medical examiner or deputy county medical examiner to
6 perform the autopsy. A county medical examiner or deputy county
7 medical examiner who performs an autopsy under this section shall
8 use the least intrusive procedures allowed under the
9 circumstances.
10 (4) As used in this act, "next of kin" means the spouse of a
11 deceased individual or an individual related to the deceased
12 individual within the third degree of consanguinity as determined
13 by the civil law method.