Chief: Chief medical examiner or his designee.
Claimant: The surviving spouse, next of kin, or friend legally entitled to receive the body of the deceased under M.G.L. c. 38, § 13.
Designated Institution: an institution the Chief has determined meets the following qualifications:
- (a) An educational institution offering an associate or bachelor degree related to funeral or mortuary services;
- (b) Accredited by the American Board of Funeral Service Education;
- (c) Provides supervision of at least one instructor licensed by the Board of Registration of Funeral Directors and Embalmers in Massachusetts; and
- (d) Demonstrates a commitment to provide competent and dignified services to the deceased.
Disposition: burial or cremation of a body.
Office: the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Unclaimed Body: An identified body that has not been claimed by a claimant.
Unidentified Body: A body that cannot be positively identified as being a particular person.
2.04 Release of an Unclaimed or Unidentified Body
- (1) The Chief may release any body in his or her possession, that remains unclaimed or unidentified, two weeks from the date of receipt of the body by the Office, to the Department of Transitional Assistance for burial in accordance with M.G.L. c. 38, § 13 and M.G.L. c. 117A, § 9.
- (2) Prior to the release of an unclaimed body to the Department of Transitional Assistance, the Chief shall ensure that reasonable efforts have been made to locate and notify the next of kin of the deceased regarding the death and location of the deceased.
- (3) Prior to the release of an unidentified body to the Department of Transitional Assistance, the Chief shall ensure that reasonable efforts have been undertaken to identify the body and shall ensure that the body has been thoroughly described and that identifying characteristics have been documented through charting, photography, fingerprinting, and dental examination. A sample from the body suitable for DNA analysis may be extracted from the body and stored by the Office.