Indiana § 36-2-14-6.5 Duty to make positive identification; manner of positive identification;
exception; timely notification of next of kin

Indiana Statutes

§ 36-2-14-6.5 — Duty to make positive identification; manner of positive identification; exception; timely notification of next of kin

Indiana § 36-2-14-6.5

Title 36LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Art. 2GOVERNMENT OF COUNTIES GENERALLY

Ch. 14County Coroner

This text of Indiana § 36-2-14-6.5 (Duty to make positive identification; manner of positive identification; exception; timely notification of next of kin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Ind. Code § 36-2-14-6.5 (2026).

Text

5.

(a)As used in this section, "DNA analysis" means an identification process in which the unique genetic code of an individual that is carried by the individual's deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is compared to genetic codes carried in DNA found in bodily substance samples obtained by a law enforcement agency in the exercise of the law enforcement agency's investigative function.

(b)As used in this section, "human remains" has the meaning set forth in IC 35-45-19-1.5.

(c)As used in this section, "immediate family member" means, with respect to the human remains of a particular dead person, an individual who is at least eighteen (18) years of age and who is one (1) of the following:

(1)The dead person's spouse.

(2)The dead person's child.

(3)The dead person's parent.

(4)The dead person's

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5. (a) As used in this section, "DNA analysis"
means an identification process in which the unique genetic code of an
individual that is carried by the individual's deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) is compared to genetic codes carried in DNA found in bodily
substance samples obtained by a law enforcement agency in the
exercise of the law enforcement agency's investigative function.
(b) As used in this section, "human remains" has the meaning set
forth in IC 35-45-19-1.5.
(c) As used in this section, "immediate family member" means, with
respect to the human remains of a particular dead person, an individual
who is at least eighteen (18) years of age and who is one (1) of the
following:
(1) The dead person's spouse.
(2) The dead person's child.
(3) The dead person's parent.
(4) The dead person's grandparent.
(5) The dead person's sibling.
(d) The coroner shall make a positive identification of human
remains unless extraordinary circumstances described in subsection (e)
exist. In making a positive identification, the coroner shall determine
the identity of the human remains by one (1) of the following methods:
(1) Fingerprint identification.
(2) DNA analysis.
(3) Dental record analysis.
(4) Tracking a unique identifying number on a medical device (as
defined in IC 24-4-12-7) that is surgically implanted in the dead
person's body.
(5) Positive identification by at least one (1) of the dead person's
immediate family members if the dead person's body is in a
physical condition that would allow for the dead person to be
reasonably recognized.
(e) For the purposes of subsection (d), extraordinary circumstances
exist if, after a thorough investigation, the coroner determines that
identification of the dead person is not possible under any of the five
(5) methods described in subsection (d).
(f) Unless extraordinary circumstances described in subsection (e)
exist, the coroner shall notify the decedent's next of kin in a timely
manner. The coroner shall retain the information derived from any of
the methods described in subsection (d) until the decedent's next of kin
has been located.