Alabama Attorney General Opinion 1979-0134

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL :44= (11 00134 ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING Si NORTE UNION STREET MONTGOMERY MA 2 AREA WEI. 134-31110 LEE L. HALE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL WILLIAM M. DEMURS. JR. EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT WALTER S. TURNER CHIEF ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL CHARLES A. GRADDICK ATTORNEY GENERAL STATE OF ALABAMA JANIE NOBLES ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT MFR 27 09 Senator Douglas Parsons 621 City Federal Building Birmingham, AL 35203 JEFFERSON COUNTY--CORONER'S OFFICE-- AUTOPSY Act No. 512 does not mandate the performance of an autopsy by Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner. Dear Senator Parsons: I am writing in response to your letter of March 16, 1979, in which you request an opinion from this office as follows: Please furnish me an'Attorney Generals opinion as to whether the Medical Examiner/Coronor in Jefferson County is under a legal duty to perform an autopsy on deaths covered under Act #512, Subsection F. Subsection F of Act No. 512, Regular Session 1977, provides in its entirety as follows: It shall be the duty of the Chief Medical Examiner to investigate and determine, or to secure another Medical Examiner to investigate and determine the cause and manner of any death when such death may fall within one or more of the following categories: Senator_pouglas Parsons M op 27 'i i9 Page 2 (a) Criminal violence or criminal neglect (b) Suicide (c) Accident (d) Suddenly when in apparent good health (e) Unattended by a practicing physician (f) Suspicious or unusual circumstances (g). Criminal abortion (h) Poisoning (i) Diseases (j) Disease, injury or toxic agent resulting from employment (k) While under anesthesia or within twenty- four hours following anesthesia or any other diagnostic or therapeutic procedure. (1) In any prison or penal institution (m) When in police custody (n) When a body is to be cremated, dissected or buried at sea (o) Unclaimed bodies (p) When a dead body is brought into this State without proper medical certification Subsection G specifically set out those conditions under which an autopsy may be performed by the Medical Examiner. It provides as follows: In investigating a death hereunder a Coroner/ Medical Examiner shall be authorized to take charge of the dead body, to investigate the circumstances of the death, to conduct or have conducted an autopsy, and whether or not there is an autopsy, to take and retain whatever tissues and biological samples he deems necessary, including blood and/or urine, from the body of a person which he deems necessary to establish the cause and manner of such person's death, and to take possession of any object or article which in his opinion would be useful in establishing the identity of the deceased and/or the cause and manner of death. CHARLES A. ATTORNET,G By- (/ / RADDICK . G. 'KENDRICK ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL. Senator Douglas Parsons \Am) 27 09 Page 3 Based on the foregoing statutory provisions, it would appear that the Coroner/Medical Examiner has a duty to investigate any death that falls within the enumerated categories. However, under the specific provisions of Subsection G the Coroner would appear to have a broad latitude of discretion to determine when an autopsy is required. Specifically, this subsection states that the Medical Examiner "shall be authorized" to conduct an autopsy and "whether or not there is an autopsy" to take and retain certain biological samples. It is, therefore, the opinion of this office that while the Medi- cal Examiner has a duty to investigate any death that falls within the enumerated categories, the Medical Examiner should conduct an autopsy only when requested by a law enforcement official or when it is essential to a determination of cause of death. Sincerely, LGK:ln