West Virginia Code of State Rules › Agency 64 - Health › Title 64 - LEGISLATIVE RULE WEST VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN RESOURCES › Series 64-84 - Medical Examiner Requirements for Postmortem Inquiries › Section 64-84-20 - Human Remains and Personal Property

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
20.1. The OCME shall release human remains
				from medical examiner custody to a licensed funeral home or as otherwise
				permitted by law when designated by the next of kin or administrator or
				executor of the estate only when accompanied by a working copy of the death
				certificate that is completed and certified by the prosector or delegate in the
				DAVE system, or in exigent or emergency situations a paper death certificate
				certified by the OCME, CoME, ACoME, or CoCo.
20.2. The licensed funeral home shall provide
				written authorization to receive the remains of the deceased by signing a form
				provided by the OCME.
20.3. The
				OCME may release custody of remains to an organ procurement organization or its
				designee only upon receipt of verbal or written authorization by the organ
				procurement organization or a copy of the prior written authorization for such
				release provided by the decedent, or by the next of kin, or the executor or
				administrator of the estate if there be an estate that the decedent or legal
				next of kin has approved or authorized organ/tissue/cornea recovery. The OCME
				shall authorize the presence of assigned representatives of an organ
				procurement organization approved by the OCME to be present to perform duties
				in the facility including accessing electronic medical records necessary to
				identify and evaluate potential donor eligibility, as well as obtain
				authorization in order to facilitate the efficient and economical recovery of
				anatomical gifts for donation. This authorization and release of custody of the
				body to the organ procurement organization by the OCME does not constitute a
				release of medical examiner case jurisdiction by the OCME. The organ
				procurement organization which accepts custody of a decedent's remains whose
				death falls under OCME jurisdiction assumes all responsibility and accrued
				liability for any change in the condition of those remains while in their
				possession.
20.4. When the OCME has
				taken charge of a body, all personal property belonging to and associated with
				the body:
20.4.1. May be taken into the
				custody of the OCME;
20.4.2. Shall
				be described and listed on forms prescribed by the OCME for that purpose;
				and
20.4.3. Shall be released to
				the principal investigating agency, upon its request, or in the absence of such
				a request, when the personal property has no forensic significance, it may be
				released to the executor or administrator of the deceased's estate or to the
				next of kin, or their designee by release to the funeral
				home/crematorium/transport agency authorized by the next of kin to accept
				custody of the decedent upon release of custody from the OCME. The OCME shall
				document the release of the personal property on forms provided by the
				OCME.