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 7.3.2.20 - AGENCIES
Universal Citation: 7 NM Admin Code 7.3.2.20
Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 6, March 26, 2024
A. Citations and regulations:
(1)
50-9-4
NMSA 1978: The agency is the state occupational health and safety agency for
all purposes under federal legislation relating to occupational health and
safety and may take all action necessary to secure to this state the benefits
of that legislation.
(2)
69-5-17
NMSA 1978: The state mine inspector shall proceed immediately upon notification
to the site of any mine accident causing the loss of life or imminent danger
and assist in the rescue of persons within the mine, investigate the causes of
the accident, conduct a closeout conference and make necessary recommendations
for the present and future safety of the miners. So far as possible, the
operator shall not change the surroundings of an accident until the state mine
inspector has made his investigation, provided, however, that such
investigation is made within a reasonable time.
(3) Document - Department of Transportation,
Federal Aviation Administration, Aircraft Accident and Incident Notification,
Investigation and Reporting, 7/76, Document #8020.11. Provided, that to the
extent consistent with the needs of the accident investigation, provisions of
local laws protecting religious beliefs with respect to autopsies shall be
observed.
(a) Pre-crash Planning. Embalming
invalidates most toxicological studies. Obtaining the early cooperation and
understanding of the local coroner/medical examiner results in smoother
operation in this area of the investigation. The state or local police may be
of help in this communication. Good communication is the key to a
well-conducted investigation and the local law enforcement agency, e.g., state
police, is an effective place for the AME to keep in contact concerning the
whereabouts of the coroner/medical examiner.
(i) If the AME does not personally know the
coroner or mortician, he should introduce himself as the authorized AME of the
federal aviation administration. This will establish the proper rapport. The
coroner can be of great assistance to the investigation but sometimes is not
fully oriented to the aviation medical aspects.
(ii) After autopsy permission has been
secured, it is then determined whether it will be done by a local pathologist
or by an FAA consultant pathologist.
(b) The coroner/medical examiner should be
contacted to arrange for autopsy/toxicology studies.
(4) Regulation - bureau of Indian affairs
1968, IAM 3.13 AND 3.13.2, Relations with Other Services and Agencies.
(a) Autopsy service. The policy is that where
the United States attorney requests a postmortem autopsy on a human body and
the case comes within the purview of the federal courts, the FBI will pay the
expenses for the transportation of the corpse, the use of an operating room
(usually a mortician's facility), and the fees of the medical officer
performing the examination. The expenses incident to autopsy service prior to
referral to the U. S. attorney may not be the responsibility of the FBI. The
FBI will not pay burial expenses incident to such cases.
(b) Land surveys. In substantially all cases
where the FBI investigates a crime on an Indian reservation pursuant to special
laws applicable to Indian reservations, it is necessary to establish legal
jurisdiction by determining the focus and status of the land on which the crime
occurred. The bureau of Indian affairs has the responsibility to determine this
requirement and for the payment of any land surveys incident thereto. Bureau
officers should familiarize themselves with the location, custody, and
availability of land records and the identity of Indian bureau or bureau of
land management personnel who are qualified to testify thereto. Working
arrangements should be established within Indian bureau facilities to provide
for these surveys and to provide personnel qualified to make and testify to
land surveys in court. This is an important prerequisite in federal and state
prosecutions and cannot be overlooked. This information shall be made available
to the FBI and the United States attorney. It will also be furnished to state
prosecuting attorneys where such surveys develop that crimes being investigated
occurred on non-federal jurisdiction lands.
(5)32-1-15 NMSA 1978:
(a) Any licensed physician, resident or
intern examining, attending or treating a child, any law enforcement officer,
registered nurse, visiting nurse, schoolteacher or social worker acting in his
official capacity or any other person knowing or suspecting that a child is an
abused or neglected child shall report the matter immediately to:
(i) the criminal prosecution division of the
office of the district attorney.
(ii) the county social services office of the
human services department in the county where the child resides; or
(iii) the probation services office of the
judicial district in which the child resides.
(b) An oral report shall be made promptly by
the recipient of the report under Paragraph 2 or 3 of Subsection A [now (ii)
and (iii) of Subparagraph (a) or Paragraph (5) of Subsection A of 7.3.2.20
NMAC] of this section to the district attorney by telephone or in person, and a
written report shall be submitted to the district attorney as soon thereafter
as possible. The written report shall contain the names and addresses of the
child and his parents, guardians or custodian, the child's age, the nature and
extent of the child's injuries, including any evidence of previous injuries,
and other information that the maker of the report believes might be helpful in
establishing the cause of the injuries and the identity of the person or
persons responsible for the injuries.
(6) Memorandum 6-6 - Veteran's
administration, medical center, Albuquerque, NM, April 18, 1984
(7) Responsibility to report deaths to the
office of the medical investigator.
B. Policy: The office of the medical investigator shall appear and assume custody of the body in all cases of sudden and unexpected deaths occurring within the state of New Mexico. In addition to the local law enforcement agency of jurisdiction, certain state and federal agencies are, by law and regulation, to be notified when the specific incident is related to their area of specialization.
(1) Aircraft: In the case of civil aircraft
disasters, the federal aviation administration (FAA) and national
transportation safety board (NTSB) are to be notified and permitted into the
scene of investigation.
(2)
Industrial: In the case of work-related industrial accidents, (excluding mining
and vehicular) officials of the occupational safety and health agency are to be
notified and permitted into the scene of investigation.
(3) Mining: In the case of mining deaths, the
state mine inspector (mining safety agency) is to be notified and permitted
into the scene of investigation.
(4) Contagious disease: In cases of
contagious diseases, in particular botulism, meningococcal infections and the
plague, but including the entire list of notifiable diseases/conditions
published by the epidemiology office of the New Mexico health and environment
department, that department is to be notified and supplied with information of
the incident.
(5) Consumer product:
In cases of consumer products being involved or present, the consumer product
safety commission is to be notified and supplied with information of the
incident.
(6) Federal jurisdiction:
In cases where the death appears to be on federal land, the FBI or appropriate
branch of the military shall be notified.
(7) Child abuse: In all cases of suspected
child abuse, the human services department of the local county shall be
notified and supplied with information of the incident and postmortem
examination.
(8) Current list: The
agencies cited here are required to provide the OMI with a current list of
representatives to be notified for response within the state of New
Mexico.
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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