2021 Colorado Code
Title 15 - Probate, Trusts, and Fiduciaries
Article 19 - Treatment of Human Bodies After Death
Part 3 - Unclaimed Human Bodies
§ 15-19-302. Duty of Public Officers as to Unclaimed Bodies

1. All public officers, agents, and servants, and all officers, agents, and servants of every county, city, township, borough, district, and other municipality, and every almshouse, prison, morgue, hospital, or other municipal or other public institution, and all other persons having charge or control over unclaimed dead human bodies required to be buried at public expense shall use reasonable effort to ascertain if the deceased person has any relative, friend, or other representative who will assume charge of the body for burial at his or her expense. If the effort does not result in the discovery of a claimant within twenty-four hours after death, the officers, agents, or other persons shall immediately notify the anatomical board or such person as may from time to time be designated by the board as its duly authorized officer or agent, when such unclaimed body or bodies come into his or her possession, charge, or control. In any county that is entirely located more than one hundred fifty miles from any accredited medical or dental school, the minimum period of notification shall be extended to forty-eight hours. The officers, agents, or other persons, without fee or reward, shall deliver the unclaimed body to the anatomical board and permit the board or its agents to take and remove all the unclaimed bodies to be used for the advancement of medical and anatomical sciences.
2. Notice shall be given to the anatomical board in all cases, but the body must not be delivered if any relative, by blood or marriage, has previously claimed the body for burial at the expense of the relative, in which case the body must be surrendered to the claimant for interment. Further, the body must not be delivered if any representative of a fraternal society of which the deceased was a member, or a representative of any charitable organization, or if any friend of the deceased indigent person claims the body for burial prior to delivery to the board, with the burial at the expense of the fraternal society, charitable organization, or friend. In the case of death of any person whose body is required to be buried at public expense and the duly authorized officer or agent of the anatomical board deems the body unfit for anatomical purposes, he or she shall notify the board of county commissioners or agency in charge of indigent persons in the county in which the person dies, in writing, and the board of county commissioners or agency shall direct a person to take charge of the body of the deceased indigent person, and cause it to be buried, and draw warrants upon the treasurer of the county for the payment of expenses.
3. Warrants for the payment of the expenses of the burial of any person whose body is required to be buried at public expense must not be drawn or paid except upon the certificate of the duly authorized officer or agent of the anatomical board to the effect that the unclaimed body is unfit for anatomical purposes due to decomposition or contagious disease, and that the provisions of this part 3 have been complied with. If, through the failure of any person to deliver the body of a deceased indigent person as required by this part 3, the unclaimed body is unfit for anatomical purposes, and is certified as unfit by the duly authorized officer or agent of the anatomical board, the body must be buried in accordance with the provisions of this part 3, and the person who failed to deliver the unclaimed body shall pay to the county treasurer the expenses incurred. Upon the refusal or failure of the person, on demand, to pay the expenses, the board of county commissioners, or such other agency as may be in charge of indigent persons in the county, may bring suit to recover the expenses, and the expenses may be recovered as debts collectible by law.

History. Source: L. 2017: Entire part added with relocations,(SB 17-223), ch. 158, p. 554, § 1, effective August 9. L. 2018: (2) and (3) amended,(HB 18-1142), ch. 65, p. 617, § 2, effective August 8.

This section is similar to former § 12-34-202 as it existed prior to 2017.

For the legislative declaration in HB 18-1142, see section 1 of chapter 65, Session Laws of Colorado 2018.

Law reviews. For article, “Disposition of Bodily Remains: Post-Death Aspects”, see 12 Colo. Law. 439 (1983).