N.Y. CNT Law § 677 — New York Code / Act CNT / Article 17-A / Section 677
Records; reports
Status: in_force

§ 677. Records; reports. 1. The writing made by the coroner, or by the\ncoroner and coroner's physician, or by the medical examiner, at the\nplace where he takes charge of the body, shall be filed promptly in the\noffice of the coroner or medical examiner. The testimony of witnesses\nexamined before him and the report of any examination made or directed\nby him shall be made in writing or reduced to writing and thereupon\nfiled in such office.\n  2. The report of any autopsy or other examination shall state every\nfact and circumstance tending to show the condition of the body and the\ncause and means or manner of death. The person performing an autopsy,\nfor the purpose of determining the cause of death or means or manner of\ndeath, shall enter upon the record the pathological appearances and\nfindings, embodying such information as may be prescribed by the\ncommissioner of health, and append thereto the diagnosis of the cause of\ndeath and of the means or manner of death. Methods and forms prescribed\nby the commissioner of health for obtaining and preserving records and\nstatistics of autopsies conducted within the state shall be employed. A\ndetailed description of the findings, written during the progress of the\nautopsy, and the conclusions drawn therefrom shall, when completed, be\nfiled in the office of the coroner or medical examiner.\n  3. (a) The coroner or coroners of each county, or the medical\nexaminer, shall keep full and complete records, properly indexed,\nstating the name, if known, of every person whose death is investigated,\nthe place where the body was found, the date of death, if known, and if\nnot known, the date or approximate date as determined by the\ninvestigation, to which there shall be attached the original report of\nthe coroner, or coroner and coroner's physician or physician employed,\nor medical examiner, and the detailed findings of the autopsy, if any.\nSuch records shall be kept in the office of the county clerk except in\nthose counties having a full-time coroner or medical examiner, in which\ncase such records shall be kept in the office of the coroner or medical\nexaminer.\n  (b) Such records shall be open to inspection by the district attorney\nof the county. Upon application of the personal representative, spouse\nor next of kin of the deceased to the coroner or the medical examiner, a\ncopy of the autopsy report, as described in subdivision two of this\nsection shall be furnished to such applicant. Upon proper application of\nany person who is or may be affected in a civil or criminal action by\nthe contents of the record of any investigation, or upon application of\nany person having a substantial interest therein, an order may be made\nby a court of record, or by a justice of the supreme court, that the\nrecord of that investigation be made available for his inspection, or\nthat a transcript thereof be furnished to him, or both.\n  4. The coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall promptly\ndeliver to the district attorney copies of all records pertaining to any\ndeath whenever, in his opinion, or in the judgment of the person\nperforming the autopsy, there is any indication that a crime was\ncommitted.\n  5. The coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall promptly\nreport to the commissioner of motor vehicles, in a form and manner\nspecified by the commissioner, the results of all quantitative tests for\nalcohol, and for any trace of a controlled substance, as defined in\nsection three thousand three hundred six of the public health law, that\nthe coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner has reasonable\ncause to believe is present, performed upon bodies of victims of motor\nvehicle accidents pursuant to the requirements of subdivision three of\nsection six hundred seventy-four of this chapter.\n  6. Notwithstanding section six hundred seventy of this article or any\nother provision of law, the coroner, coroner's physician or medical\nexaminer shall promptly provide the chair of the correction medical\nreview board and the commissioner of corrections and community\nsupervision with copies of any autopsy report, toxicological report or\nany report of any examination or inquiry prepared with respect to any\ndeath occurring to an incarcerated individual of a correctional facility\nas defined by subdivision three of section forty of the correction law\nwithin their county; and shall promptly provide the executive director\nof the justice center for the protection of people with special needs\nwith copies of any autopsy report, toxicology report or any report of\nany examination or inquiry prepared with respect to the death of any\nservice recipient occurring while such person was a resident in any\nfacility operated, licensed or certified by any agency within the\ndepartment of mental hygiene, the office of children and family\nservices, the department of health or the state education department. If\nthe toxicological report is prepared pursuant to any agreement or\ncontract with any person, partnership, corporation or governmental\nagency with the coroner or medical examiner, such report shall be\npromptly provided to the chair of the correction medical review board,\nthe commissioner of corrections and community supervision or the\nexecutive director of the justice center for the protection of people\nwith special needs, as appropriate, by such person, partnership,\ncorporation or governmental agency. For the purposes of this\nsubdivision, in addition to anything else required by law, the copy of\nthe autopsy report shall include all photographs of the body and\npost-mortem x-rays taken by or at the direction of the person performing\nthe autopsy, and all photographs and post-mortem x-rays reviewed by the\nperson performing the autopsy in the course of their examination or in\nthe course of their diagnosis of the cause of death and the means or\nmanner of death. Such copy of the autopsy report may also include images\nof all microscopic slides taken by or at the direction of the person\nperforming the autopsy and images of all microscopic slides reviewed by\nthe person performing the autopsy in the course of their examination or\nin the course of their diagnosis of the cause of death and the means or\nmanner of death. If such images of microscopic slides are not included\nin the copy of the autopsy report provided pursuant to this subdivision,\nthe copy of the autopsy report shall indicate that such images of\nmicroscopic slides have been omitted, and, upon request of the chair of\nthe correction medical review board, the commissioner of corrections and\ncommunity supervision or the executive director of the justice center\nfor the protection of people with special needs, a coroner, coroner's\nphysician or medical examiner shall promptly provide access to inspect\nsuch microscopic slides or, where practicable, provide images of such\nmicroscopic slides.\n  7. (a) Upon the written request of the commissioner of mental health,\nthe commissioner of the office for persons with developmental\ndisabilities, the director of the mental hygiene legal service, the\nexecutive director of the justice center for the protection of people\nwith special needs or the director of a mental hygiene facility, as\ndefined in subdivision two of section five hundred fifty of the\nexecutive law, at which the deceased was a patient or resident, the\ncoroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall provide such\nperson with a copy of all reports and records, including, but not\nlimited to, autopsy reports and toxicological reports related to the\ndeceased prepared by a person, partnership, corporation or governmental\nagency pursuant to any agreement or contract with the coroner or medical\nexaminer with respect to the death of a patient or resident receiving\nservices at such a mental hygiene facility.\n  (b) Upon the written request of the commissioner of mental health, or\ncommissioner of developmental disabilities, or a director of a\ndepartmental facility as defined in section 1.03 of the mental hygiene\nlaw, or the executive director of the justice center for the protection\nof people with special needs, the coroner, coroner's physician or\nmedical examiner shall transmit to the commissioner, or such director,\nor any member of the justice center medical review board, original\nautopsy slides, tissue materials and specimens taken from the body of a\ndeceased patient or resident as defined in paragraph (a) of this\nsection. Such original materials may be used and tested by such office\nof the department of mental hygiene, or such director, and justice\ncenter medical review board pursuant to its authority under section five\nhundred fifty-six of the executive law. Such slides, materials and\nspecimens may be retained for a reasonable time, and shall be returned\nto the office of the coroner or medical examiner in good condition\nallowing for reasonable use for study and testing purposes.\n  8. The coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall\npromptly, but in no event later than sixty days from the date of death,\nabsent extraordinary circumstances, provide the office of children and\nfamily services with copies of any autopsy report, toxicological report\nor any report of any examination or inquiry prepared with respect to any\ndeath occurring to a child whose care and custody or custody and\nguardianship has been transferred to an authorized agency, a child for\nwhom child protective services has an open case, a child for whom the\nlocal department of social services has an open preventive services\ncase, or a child reported to the statewide central register of child\nabuse and maltreatment. If the toxicological report is prepared pursuant\nto any agreement or contract with any person, partnership, corporation\nor governmental agency with the coroner or medical examiner, such report\nshall be promptly, but in no event later than sixty days from the date\nof death, absent extraordinary circumstances, provided to the office of\nchildren and family services by such person, partnership, corporation or\ngovernmental agency. Where the death involves a child reported to the\nstatewide central register of child abuse and maltreatment, the reports\nreferred to in this subdivision shall also be promptly, but in no event\nlater than sixty days from the date of death, absent extraordinary\ncircumstances, provided to the local child protective service\ninvestigating the report pursuant to section four hundred twenty-four of\nthe social services law.\n  9. (a) When required for official purposes of the state department of\nhealth, the state commissioner of health or their designee may request\ncopies of all reports and records related to a death, including, but not\nlimited to, autopsy reports and toxicology reports. Upon receipt of the\nwritten request of the state commissioner of health or their designee, a\ncoroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner, shall, within three\nbusiness days of their completion, provide to such commissioner or their\ndesignee a copy of all reports and records, including, but not limited\nto, autopsy reports and toxicology reports related to the death.\n  (b) When required for official purposes of a health district as\ndefined in section two of the public health law, the local health\nofficer of such district may request copies of all reports and records\nrelated to a death, including, but not limited to, autopsy reports and\ntoxicology reports when: (i) a death occurs within the local health\ndistrict in which the local health official exercises jurisdiction; or\n(ii) a death occurs outside the local health district in which the local\nhealth officer exercises jurisdiction, provided that the decedent was a\nresident of such local health district when they:\n  (1) sustained a physical injury or toxicological exposure that was a\ndirect or contributing cause of death;\n  (2) received significant medical care or treatment for the disease or\ncondition leading to death; or\n  (3) were pronounced dead or the body was found.\n  (c) Upon receipt of the written request of the local health officer, a\ncoroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner, shall:\n  (i) when such death has occurred within the local health district in\nwhich the requesting local health officer exercises jurisdiction,\nprovide to such local health officer a copy of all reports and records,\nincluding, but not limited to, autopsy reports and toxicology reports\nrelated to the death within three days of their completion; or\n  (ii) when such death has occurred outside of the local health district\nin which the requesting local health officer exercises jurisdiction,\nprovide to such local health officer a copy of all reports and records,\nincluding but not limited to, autopsy reports and toxicology reports\nrelated to the death within the earlier of (1) seven days of their\ncompletion; or (2) seven days of receiving such written request; and\n  (iii) maintain such documents as part of the official case record.\n  (d) The requesting local health officer shall maintain a log of all\nrequests made outside of their local health district and shall, within\nthree business days of making the request, provide a copy of the written\nrequest to the local health officer with jurisdiction over the local\nhealth district from which the records were requested.\n  10. (a) The coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall\nreport to the division of veterans' services, in a form, and time frame\ndeveloped by the department of health in a manner that is protective of\nprivacy and contains aggregate, rather than individual data to the\nextent practicable, any death which appears to be caused by suicide by a\nperson who, to the knowledge of the coroner, coroner's physician or\nmedical examiner, is a veteran.\n  (b) For the purposes of this subdivision, veteran means a person who\nserved in the United States army, navy, air force, space force, marine\ncorps, coast guard, and/or reserves thereof, and/or in the army national\nguard, air national guard, New York guard and/or New York naval militia,\nand/or who served as a member of the commissioned corps of the national\noceanic and atmospheric administration or the United States public\nhealth service regardless of discharge status.\n