                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

INVESTIGATION OF DEATHS; OBTAINING CONSENT TO REMOVAL OF ORGANS, ETC.; FEES (§
32.1-283)

A. Upon the death of any person from trauma, injury, violence, poisoning,
accident, suicide, or homicide, or suddenly when in apparent good health, or
when unattended by a physician, or in jail, prison, or other correctional
institution, or in police custody, or who was at the time of his death, or
immediately prior to admission to another hospital, an individual receiving
services in a state hospital or training center operated by the Department of
Behavioral Health and Developmental Services whether the death of such
individual was expected or unexpected, or suddenly as an apparent result of
fire, or in any suspicious, unusual, or unnatural manner, or the sudden death of
any infant, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall be notified by the
physician in attendance, hospital, law-enforcement officer, funeral director, or
any other person having knowledge of such death. Good faith efforts shall be
made by any person or institution having initial custody of the dead body to
identify and to notify the next of kin of the decedent. Notification shall
include informing the person presumed to be the next of kin that he has a right
to have identification of the decedent confirmed without due delay and without
being held financially responsible for any procedures performed for the purpose
of the identification. Identity of the next of kin, if determined, shall be
provided to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner upon transfer of the dead
body.

B. Upon being notified of a death as provided in subsection A, the Office of the
Chief Medical Examiner shall take charge of the dead body and the Chief Medical
Examiner shall cause an investigation into the cause and manner of death to be
made and a full report, which shall include written findings, to be prepared. In
order to facilitate the investigation, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
is authorized to inspect and copy the pertinent medical records of the decedent
whose death is the subject of the investigation. Full directions as to the
nature, character, and extent of the investigation to be made in such cases
shall be furnished each medical examiner appointed pursuant to &#xA7; 32.1-282
by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, together with appropriate forms for
the required reports and instructions for their use. The facilities and
personnel of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall be made available to
any medical examiner investigating a death in accordance with this section.
Reports and findings of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall be
confidential and shall not under any circumstance be disclosed or made available
for discovery pursuant to a court subpoena or otherwise, except as provided in
this chapter. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the Office of the Chief
Medical Examiner from releasing the cause or manner of death or prohibit
disclosure of reports or findings to the parties in a criminal case.

C. A copy of each report pursuant to this section shall be delivered to the
appropriate attorney for the Commonwealth and to the appropriate law-enforcement
agency investigating the death. A copy of any such report regarding the death of
a victim of a traffic accident shall be furnished upon request to the State
Police and the Highway Safety Commission. In addition, a copy of any report
concerning an individual who was receiving services, or who immediately prior to
admission to another hospital received services, in a state hospital or training
center operated by the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental
Services shall be delivered to the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and
Developmental Services and to the State Inspector General. A copy of any autopsy
report concerning a prisoner committed to the custody of the Director of the
Department of Corrections shall, upon request of the Director of the Department
of Corrections, be delivered to the Director of the Department of Corrections. A
copy of any autopsy report concerning a prisoner committed to any local
correctional facility shall be delivered to the local sheriff or superintendent.
Upon request, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall release such
autopsy report to the decedent&#8217;s attending physician and to the personal
representative or executor of the decedent. At the discretion of the Chief
Medical Examiner, an autopsy report may be released to the following persons in
the following order of priority: (i) the spouse of the decedent, (ii) an adult
son or daughter of the decedent, (iii) either parent of the decedent, (iv) an
adult sibling of the decedent, (v) any other adult relative of the decedent in
order of blood relationship, or (vi) any appropriate health facility quality
assurance program.

D. For each investigation under this article, including the making of the
required reports, the medical examiner appointed pursuant to &#xA7; 32.1-282
shall receive a fee established by the Board within the limitations of
appropriations for the purpose. Such fee shall be paid by the Commonwealth if
the deceased is not a legal resident of the county or city in which his death
occurred. In the event the deceased is a legal resident of the county or city in
which his death occurred, such county or city shall be responsible for the fee
up to $20. If the deceased is an individual who receives services in a state
hospital or training center operated by the Department of Behavioral Health and
Developmental Services, the fee shall be paid by the Department of Behavioral
Health and Developmental Services.

E. Nothing herein shall be construed to interfere with the autopsy procedure or
with the routine obtaining of consent for removal of organs as conducted by
surgical teams or others.

HISTORY: Code 1950, §§ 32-31.17, 32-31.18, 32-31.20; 1950, p. 659; 1952, cc.
318, 705; 1960, c. 366; 1962, c. 366; 1968, c. 431; 1972, cc. 556, 741; 1974, c.
443; 1975, c. 475; 1978, c. 175; 1979, c. 711; 1981, c. 388; 1985, c. 228; 1993,
c. 965; 2002, c. 203; 2003, c. 368; 2007, cc. 19, 868; 2008, cc. 287, 433; 2009,
cc. 813, 840; 2011, cc. 798, 871; 2012, cc. 476, 507; 2014, c. 583; 2023, c.
566.