New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 7 - HEALTH
Chapter 3 - STATE MEDICAL INVESTIGATOR'S OFFICE
Part 2 - POLICIES OF THE OFFICE OF THE MEDICAL INVESTIGATOR
Section 7.3.2.11 - INVESTIGATION - SCENE OF DEATH
Universal Citation: 7 NM Admin Code 7.3.2.11
Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 6, March 26, 2024
A. Citations and Regulations:
(1)
12-2-4
NMSA 1978:
(a) For medical, legal and
statutory purposes, death of a human being occurs when, and "death," "dead
body," "dead person" or any other reference to human death means that:
(i) based on ordinary standards of medical
practice, there is the absence of spontaneous respiratory and cardiac function
and, because of the disease or condition which caused, directly or indirectly,
these functions to cease, or because of the passage of time since these
functions ceased, there is no reasonable possibility of restoring respiratory
or cardiac functions; in this event, death occurs at the time respiratory or
cardiac functions ceased; or
(ii)
in the opinion of a physician, based on ordinary standards of medical practice:
a) because of a known
disease or condition there is the absence of spontaneous brain function; and b)
after reasonable attempts to either maintain or restore spontaneous circulatory
or respiratory functions in the absence of spontaneous brain function, it
appears that further attempts at resuscitation and supportive maintenance have
no reasonable possibility of restoring spontaneous brain function; in this
event death will have occurred at the time when the absence of spontaneous
brain function first occurred. Death is to be pronounced pursuant to this
paragraph before artificial means of supporting respiratory or circulatory
functions are terminated and before any vital organ is removed for purposes of
transplantation in compliance with the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act [24-6-1 to
24-6-9 NMSA 1978].
(b) The
alternative definitions of death in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Subsection A [now (i)
and (ii) of Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 7.3.2.11 NMAC]
of this section are to be utilized for all purposes in this state, including
but not limited to civil and criminal actions, notwithstanding any other law to
the contrary.
(2)
24-11-5
NMSA 1978: When any person comes to a sudden, violent or untimely death or is
found dead and the cause of death is unknown, anyone who becomes aware of the
death shall report it immediately to law enforcement authorities or the office
of the state or district medical investigator. The public official so notified,
shall in turn notify either, or both, the appropriate law enforcement
authorities or the office of the state or district medical investigator. The
state or district medical investigator, or a deputy medical investigator under
his direction, shall, without delay, view and take legal custody of the
body.
(3)
24-11-9
NMSA 1978: The state, district or deputy medical investigator may administer
and may issue a subpoena to compel the attendance and production of evidence by
any necessary witness, and the subpoena may be enforced in the district court.
Any subpoena shall be served without cost by the sheriff or any deputy or by
any member of the New Mexico state police.
(4)
24-11-10
NMSA 1978:
(a) It is unlawful to:
(i) willfully and without good cause neglect
or refuse to report a death to law enforcement authorities or the office of the
state or district medical investigator as required by law; or
(ii) willfully and unnecessarily touch,
remove or disturb any dead body required by law to be reported to the state or
district medical investigator, or any article on or near the body or disturb
its surroundings until authority is granted by the state, district or deputy
medical investigator.
(b) Any person violating this section is
guilty of a petty misdemeanor.
B. Policy:
(1) Pronouncement of death - OMI cases: When
there is no physician present, the representative of the office of the medical
investigator shall immediately pronounce death and shall provide the time of
pronouncement to the law enforcement official present.
(2) Authority at the scene: At scenes of
reportable deaths when the initial determination is that criminality exists,
the police agency shall be primarily responsible for conducting the
investigation at the scene. This investigation shall include the
representatives of the office of the medical investigator who will view the
scene and take appropriate photographs prior to disturbance of any item within
the scene. Only when both the law enforcement official having jurisdiction and
the OMI representative are satisfied that the investigation is complete enough
to warrant moving the body shall the body then be examined by the OMI
representative. During this examination, the representative of the OMI will
provide as much information as possible to the law enforcement agency regarding
a possible cause and manner of death. Nothing shall be done at this point that
will taint, tamper with or disturb any item on the body that may subsequently
require examination by a specified pathologist during the course of his
external or internal examination. When the initial determination at a scene is
that no criminality exists, the representative of the OMI shall assume primary
responsibility and may direct the law enforcement agency to provide security
for the scene. In cases of vehicular deaths, the law enforcement agency remains
the primary investigator of the circumstances.
(3) Evidence at the scene: Any item deemed
evidentiary by law enforcement definition, whether criminal charges exist or
not, shall belong to that law enforcement agency having jurisdiction; such
evidence at a death scene may be requested by the state medical investigator to
accompany the body to aid in the examination and subsequent findings. The chain
of custody is to be maintained and documented by the OMI, and all items shall
be receipted back to that law enforcement agency. No item identified as
evidence by a law enforcement agency shall remain in the custody of the state
medical investigator longer than is required to examine that
evidence.
(4) Preservation of the
evidence: In assuming custody of a body, the OMI is authorized to remove
anything that is on or in the body, to secure and analyze that material where
appropriate, and to be responsible for the formal reporting of that analysis,
the safekeeping of that material, and the receipting of that material to a law
enforcement agency, where appropriate, for their retention and analysis.
Specimens retained by the OMI are held for specified periods of time. Prior to
disposal, the respective district attorney is advised.
(5) Body not at the scene: When the body has
been removed from the scene of the death for medical examination, the first
responsibility of the representative of the OMI shall be to respond to the
location of the body in order to pronounce death (if not performed by a
physician) and to assume custody of the body. Any subsequent scene
investigation is to be performed after the body is secured, sealed and held
within a morgue facility or turned over to an authorized transport company.
There will be cases where no scene investigation is possible.
(6) Removal from a scene: Only a
representative of the OMI may order a body removed from the scene.
(7) Subpoena of records: A representative of
the OMI may issue and serve a subpoena within the state of New Mexico for the
production of evidence by any necessary witness.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New Mexico may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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