2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 24 - Health and Safety › Article 12 - Disposition of Dead Bodies › Section 24-12-1 - Notification of legal next of kin of decedent; authorization of person designated on record of emergency data form to direct burial; unclaimed decedents.

A. As used in this section:
(1) "due diligence" means the reasonable steps taken to satisfy the legal requirement relating to the disposition of dead bodies, including attempts to identify the body and locate legal next of kin; and
(2) "legal next of kin" means the following persons in the order listed:
(a) the surviving spouse;
(b) a majority of the surviving adult children of the decedent;
(c) the surviving parents of the decedent;
(d) a majority of the surviving siblings of the decedent;
(e) the adult person of the next degree of kinship in the order named by New Mexico law to inherit the estate of the decedent; or
(f) an adult who has exhibited special care and concern for the decedent and is aware of the decedent's views and desires regarding the disposition of the decedent's body and is willing and able to make a decision about the disposition of the decedent's body.
B. State, county, municipal officials or other person having charge or control of the body of a decedent shall use due diligence to notify the legal next of kin or other claimant of the decedent.
C. If the decedent died while serving in any branch of the United States armed forces, the United States reserve forces or the national guard, during any period of duty when the secretary of the military service concerned can provide for the recovery, care and disposition of remains, and the decedent completed a United States department of defense record of emergency data form or its successor form, the authority to direct the burial of the decedent or to provide other funeral and disposition arrangements for the decedent devolves on the person designated by the decedent pursuant to that form.
D. If no claimant is found who will assume the cost of burial, the official having charge or control of the decedent shall notify the county, stating, when possible, the name, age, sex, legal next of kin and cause of death of the deceased and any other information obtained that the county could use to conduct due diligence. The county may perform additional due diligence if reasonably determined necessary.
E. If reasonable opportunity has been afforded to the legal next of kin and if no other claimant has been found, the decedent may be deemed unclaimed and the legal next of kin deemed to have waived the right to take possession of the body. Unless the medical investigator retains the body in accordance with Section 24-12-2 NMSA 1978, the county shall authorize disposition of the body. As used in this subsection, "reasonable opportunity" means fourteen days after the legal next of kin has been notified at the legal next of kin's last known addresses.
F. The body shall be embalmed, if required, and buried or cremated according to rules of the agency having jurisdiction. After the exercise of due diligence required in Subsection B of this section, the medical investigator shall be provided material data demonstrating due diligence and the fact that no claimant has been found. When the medical investigator has determined that due diligence has been exercised, that reasonable opportunity has been afforded to legal next of kin to claim the body and that the body has not been claimed, the medical investigator shall determine that the remains are unclaimed. In no case shall an unclaimed body be disposed of in less than two weeks from the date of the discovery of the body.
History:
Laws 1941, ch. 148, § 1; 1941 Comp., § 71-501; 1953 Comp., § 12-7-1; reenacted by Laws 1973, ch. 354, § 1; 1977, ch. 204, § 1; 1978 Comp., § 24-12-1; 1999, ch. 241, § 1; 2011, ch. 22, § 1; 2023, ch. 162, § 1.
ANNOTATIONS
Cross references.
— For medical investigations generally,
see
Chapter 24, Article 11 NMSA.
For burial of indigents generally,
see
Chapter 24, Article 13 NMSA 1978.
The 2023 amendment,
effective July 1, 2023, required entities that have charge or control over a dead body to give reasonable opportunity for legal next of kin to take possession of an unclaimed body, and defined "legal next of kin," "due diligence" and "reasonable opportunity"; in the section heading, deleted "relatives" and added "legal next of kin", and substituted "deceased" with "decedent"; added new Subsection A and redesignated former Subsections A and B as Subsections B and C, respectively; after "notify the", deleted "relatives" and added "legal next of kin or other claimant"; deleted former Subsection C; added a new Subsection D and redesignated former Subsection D as Subsection E; and in Subsection F, added "if required, and buried or cremated", changed "Subsection A", to "Subsection B", deleted "and the report to the medical investigator required in Subsection C of this section", and deleted "relatives" and added "to legal next of kin".
The 2011 amendment,
effective June 17, 2011, authorized a person designated on a United States department of defense record of emergency data form to direct the disposition of the remains of a decedent who died while serving in the armed forces, reserve forces or national guard.
The 1999 amendment,
effective June 18, 1999, in Subsection A, substituted "having charge or control of a body of a dead person" for "having charge or control of bodies to be buried at public expense"; and in Subsection B, substituted "sex and cause of death of the deceased" for "sex and cause of death of any person required to be buried at public expense".
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. —
22A Am. Jur. 2d Dead Bodies § 1 et seq.
Dead bodies: liability for improper manner of reinterment, 53 A.L.R.4th 394.
25A C.J.S. Dead Bodies § 1 et seq.