Duty to investigate certain deaths.

Pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the Coroner-Medical Examiners' Commission, it shall be the duty of the chief and associate coroner-medical examiners to review or investigate and determine, the cause and manner of any death, when such death may fall within one or more of the following categories subject to the commission's power to change the categories:

(1) Criminal violence or criminal neglect.

(2) Criminal abortion.

(3) When a body is to be cremated, dissected, or buried at sea.

(4) Unclaimed bodies.

(5) When a dead body is brought into this state without proper medical certification.

(6) Accident, when requested by surviving spouse, if any, or next of kin.

(7) Unexpected death while under anesthesia or within 24 hours following anesthesia, or any other diagnostic or therapeutic procedure with the written permission of the surviving spouse or next of kin.

(8) In any prison or penal institution.

(9) When in police custody.

(10) Disease constituting a hazard to public health when requested in writing by the county health officer.

(Act 79-454, p. 739, §8.)