An Act To Improve Death Investigations
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0884
Committee: Judiciary
Sponsors: GERZOFSKY, GRAHAM
Amends: 22 MRSA §3023, 22 MRSA §3023-A, 22 MRSA §3024, 22 MRSA §3028, 22 MRSA §3033

Legislative Document 
No. 884 
S.P. 309 
In Senate, March 5, 2013 
An Act To Improve Death Investigations 
Submitted by the Department of the Attorney General pursuant to Joint Rule 204. 
Reference to the Committee on Judiciary suggested and ordered printed. 
DAREK M. GRANT 
Secretary of the Senate 
Presented by Senator GERZOFSKY of Cumberland. 
Cosponsored by Representative GRAHAM of North Yarmouth. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §3023, first ¶, as amended by PL 2001, c. 222, §2, is further 
amended to read: 
The Chief Medical Examiner shall appoint medical examiners, who have statewide 
jurisdiction and serve at the pleasure of the Chief Medical Examiner, subject to the Chief 
Medical Examiner's control and the rules adopted by the Chief Medical Examiner.  The 
medical examiners must be learned in the science of medicine and anatomy, licensed as 
physicians in this State and bona fide residents of this State.  Each medical examiner 
before entering upon the duties of the office must be duly sworn to the faithful 
performance of the medical examiner's duty. 
Sec. 2.  22 MRSA §3023-A is enacted to read: 
§3023-A.  Medicolegal death investigators; appointment; jurisdiction 
The Chief Medical Examiner may appoint persons who are not physicians as 
medicolegal death investigators, who have statewide jurisdiction and serve at the pleasure 
of the Chief Medical Examiner, subject to the Chief Medical Examiner's control and rules 
adopted by the Chief Medical Examiner. Medicolegal death investigators must meet the 
certification and training requirements established by the Chief Medical Examiner and 
must be residents of this State.  Medicolegal death investigators may be employees of the 
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner or serve on a fee-for-service basis as determined 
by the Chief Medical Examiner.  A medicolegal death investigator before entering upon 
the duties of the office must be duly sworn to the faithful performance of the medicolegal 
death investigator's duty. 
Sec. 3.  22 MRSA §3024, first, 3rd and last ¶¶, as amended by PL 2001, c. 
222, §3, are further amended to read: 
The salary of the Chief Medical Examiner of the State must be set by the Governor.  
Other nonsalaried medical examiners and nonsalaried medicolegal death investigators, 
upon the submission of their completed report to the Chief Medical Examiner, must be 
paid a fee of up to $70 for an inspection and view and are entitled to receive travel 
expenses to be calculated at the mileage rate currently paid to state employees pursuant to 
Title 5, section 8.  An additional fee of $50 may be authorized by the Chief Medical 
Examiner for payment to other nonsalaried medical examiners and nonsalaried 
medicolegal death investigators for visits to death scenes other than hospitals. 
The Chief Medical Examiner may, in an unusual circumstance as determined by the 
Chief Medical Examiner, prescribe a special fee for the service of a medical examiner or 
medicolegal death investigator or for any consultant service the Chief Medical Examiner 
determines necessary. 
If the Chief Medical Examiner or employees of that office provide expert opinion or 
testimony relating to Maine medical examiner cases on behalf of private litigants, the 
Chief Medical Examiner may set a reasonable fee for these services, preparation leading 
to them and expenses incurred in providing them.  All fees, charges or other receipts must 
be credited to the General Fund.  Medical examiners, medicolegal death investigators and 
consultants who serve the State on a fee per case basis are excluded from this paragraph 
and may make private arrangements for these services. 
Sec. 4.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2001, c. 291, §1, is further 
amended to read: 
1.  Authority to conduct investigation.  The medical examiner or the person 
expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death investigator has 
authority to conduct an investigation and inquiry into the cause, manner and 
circumstances of death in a medical examiner case. The medical examiner or authorized 
person medicolegal death investigator shall, if it is determined necessary, immediately 
proceed to the scene and, subject to the authority of the Attorney General, assume 
custody of the body for the purposes of the investigation, and shall retain custody until 
the investigation has been completed or until the Chief Medical Examiner has assumed 
charge of the case. 
Sec. 5.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2001, c. 291, §2, is further 
amended to read: 
2.  Investigation by law enforcement officer.  When death is not suspected to be the 
result of physical injury attributable to criminal conduct, the medical examiner may elect 
not to proceed to the scene, or the Chief Medical Examiner may elect not to dispatch a 
medical examiner or the person expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner 
under subsection 1 medicolegal death investigator to the scene. If the medical examiner 
elects not to proceed to the scene, or the Chief Medical Examiner elects not to dispatch a 
medical examiner or authorized person medicolegal death investigator to the scene, the 
law enforcement officer in charge of the scene shall: 
A.  Investigate, take photographs and take possession of useful objects as directed by 
the medical examiner, authorized person medicolegal death investigator or the Office 
of Chief Medical Examiner pursuant to subsection 4; 
C.  Remove the body in accordance with the instructions of the medical examiner, 
authorized person medicolegal death investigator or the Office of Chief Medical 
Examiner; and 
D.    Make a report of the investigation available to the medical examiner, authorized 
person medicolegal death investigator or the Office of Chief Medical Examiner. 
Sec. 6.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2001, c. 291, §3, is further 
amended to read: 
3.  Assistance of law enforcement agency.  The medical examiner, the person 
expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death investigator or 
the pathologist as described in subsection 8, may request the assistance and use of the 
facilities of the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the case for the purposes 
of photographing, fingerprinting or otherwise identifying the body. That agency shall 
provide the medical examiner, authorized person medicolegal death investigator or 
pathologist with a written report of the steps taken in providing the assistance. 
Sec. 7.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2001, c. 291, §4, is further 
amended to read: 
4.  Possession of useful objects.  Except as otherwise directed by the Attorney 
General, the Attorney General's deputies or assistants, the medical examiner, the person 
expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death investigator or 
the Office of Chief Medical Examiner may direct that a law enforcement officer at the 
scene make measurements, take photographs and take possession of all objects that in the 
opinion of the medical examiner, authorized person medicolegal death investigator or the 
Office of Chief Medical Examiner may be useful in establishing the cause, manner and 
circumstances of death.  For these same purposes, the medical examiner, authorized 
person medicolegal death investigator or the Office of Chief Medical Examiner may 
direct that a law enforcement officer take possession of any objects or specimens that 
have been removed from the victim at the scene or elsewhere while under medical care. 
Sec. 8.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2001, c. 291, §5, is further 
amended to read: 
5.  Requests for objects.  Any person having possession of any object or objects, as 
described in subsection 4, shall at the request of the medical examiner or the person 
expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death investigator give 
that object or objects to a law enforcement officer, to the medical examiner, to the 
authorized person medicolegal death investigator or to the Office of Chief Medical 
Examiner.  Medical personnel and institutions turning over any objects or specimens that 
have been removed from the victim while under medical care are immune from civil or 
criminal liability when complying with this subsection.  Original written or recorded 
material that might express suicidal intent must be sent to the Office of the Chief Medical 
Examiner.  The Chief Medical Examiner may elect to accept copies in place of originals. 
Sec. 9.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§6, as amended by PL 2011, c. 182, §1, is further 
amended to read: 
6.  Examination of body.  In all cases, the medical examiner or the person expressly 
authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death investigator shall conduct a 
thorough examination of the body except in those cases when the body has already been 
disposed of and is not being exhumed or when the Chief Medical Examiner or Deputy 
Chief Medical Examiner determines, after review of available records and known 
circumstances, that the report of the death of the decedent may be certified and completed 
without examining the body. 
Sec. 10.  22 MRSA §3028, sub-§7, as repealed and replaced by PL 2003, c. 510, 
Pt. B, §7, is amended to read: 
7.  Written report.  Upon completing an investigation, the medical examiner or the 
person expressly authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner medicolegal death 
investigator shall submit a written report of the investigator's findings to the Chief 
Medical Examiner on forms provided for that purpose. The investigator shall retain one 
copy of the report. 
If an investigator reports suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation to the Chief Medical 
Examiner, the Chief Medical Examiner, by reporting that information to the department 
on behalf of the investigator, fulfills the medical examiner's mandatory reporting 
requirement under section 3477 or 4011-A. 
Sec. 11.  22 MRSA §3033, sub-§1, ¶¶B and C, as enacted by PL 2001, c. 222, 
§12, are amended to read: 
B.  A pathologist performing an autopsy at the request of a medical examiner or the 
Chief Medical Examiner may not be held liable for damages for any injury or damage 
that results from the performance of the autopsy unless it can be shown that the injury 
or damage resulted from the gross negligence of the pathologist; and 
C.  A professional consultant, who at the request of a medical examiner or the Chief 
Medical Examiner conducts an examination and renders a report, may not be held 
liable for damages for any injury or damage that results from the performance of the 
examination unless it can be shown that the injury or damage resulted from the gross 
negligence of the consultant.; and 
Sec. 12.  22 MRSA §3033, sub-§1, ¶D is enacted to read: 
D.  A medicolegal death investigator may not be held liable for damages for any 
injury or damage that results from the exercise and discharge of any of the 
medicolegal death investigator's official duties unless it can be shown that the injury 
or damage resulted from gross negligence on the part of the medicolegal death 
investigator. 
SUMMARY 
This bill allows the Chief Medical Examiner to appoint qualifying persons who are 
not physicians as medicolegal death investigators with the authority to go to death scenes 
and conduct investigations and inquiries into the cause, manner and circumstances of 
death in medical examiner cases. Medicolegal death investigators may be employees of 
the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner or serve on a fee-for-service basis as 
determined by the Chief Medical Examiner.