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Medical Examiner's Office

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1. Can I say no to an autopsy?

The Medical Examiner has legal authority to decide if an autopsy will be performed. However, we certainly wish to respect the wishes and concerns of you and your family during this difficult time. We encourage you to call and discuss your particular situation with the Medical Examiner, as part of his or her decision making process. If you do object to an autopsy you should contact our office as soon as possible at 509-477-2296 and advise us of your concern.

2. How do I find out about organ and tissue donation?

Although our office has no part in determining the suitability of organ and tissue recovery, we do try to facilitate the process by putting families in touch with the regional agency that does this work. If you have such an interest you may call the Donor Information Line at 800-214-6356 to have your questions answered about tissue and organ recovery.

3. How do I find the Medical Examiner's Office?

Driving directions from the freeway are as follows:
- Take Exit 281, Division Street, northbound off of the freeway. This is a three to four lane, one way, arterial.
- Stay on this arterial northbound for approximately 4.1 miles, and then turn right at the traffic light on Central Avenue (5800 block North Division). Our office entrance is located approximately two blocks east of Division on Central, on the left, in the North Spokane Professional Building, 5901 N Lidgerwood. We are downstairs in Suite 24B. Please call if you need other directions at 509-477-2296.

4. How do I get the personal effects back?

Clothing will go to the funeral home with the body. Other personal items such as jewelry, wallets, keys, etc. are logged separately, held in a secure area at our facility, and then released to the next-of-kin or to someone they designate.

Unclaimed property is transferred to the Spokane County Treasurer/Auditor on a regular basis per Washington State Law (see RCW 36.247.130). You may call our office and make arrangements to pick these items up.

Medications in the name of the deceased cannot be released.

5. How do I obtain a copy of an autopsy report?

There is a $20 copy fee payable by cash, check, or money order. The copy fee is due prior to any records being released. Checks and money orders must be payable to The Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office.

This report is confidential in the state of Washington per RCW 68.50.105.

As stated in RCW 68.50.105, Reports and records of autopsies or postmortems shall be confidential, except that the following persons may examine and obtain copies of any such report or record: The personal representative of the decedent as defined in RCW 11.02.005, any family member, the attending physician or advanced registered nurse practitioner, the prosecuting attorney or law enforcement agencies having jurisdiction, public health officials, the department of labor and industries in cases in which it has an interest under RCW 68.50.103, or the secretary of the department of social and health services or his or her designee in cases being reviewed under RCW 74.13.640. (The term "family" means the surviving spouse, state registered domestic partner, or any child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, brother, or sister of the decedent, or any person who was guardian of the decedent at the time of death).

If you meet the criteria listed above, you may request a copy of the autopsy report. This can be done in person, by phone, or in writing. Written requests should include the name of the decedent, your relationship to the decedent, your contact information to include where you would like the report mailed, and the copy fee.

If the request is coming from someone other than the parties which are listed in RCW 68.50.105, then the request must also include a release signed by the next-of-kin.


RCW 68.50.105

6. How do I obtain a Death Certificate?

Copies of the death certificate are often needed to make insurance claims, transfer titles, and to finish other financial business. Most funeral homes will help you get copies of the death certificate or you can call the Spokane Regional Health District, Vital Records at 509-324-1524. You may also visit their website below.

The Medical Examiner’s Office does not have the ability to issue copies of Death Certificates. Only Vital Records and/or the Funeral Home can provide these to you.

Spokane Regional Health District Website

7. How much will Medical Examiner services cost?

With the exception of the autopsy report (if desired), there is no charge for the services provided by our office. We are supported by county tax dollars and revenue from surrounding counties.

8. What do I do with the residence?

The Medical Examiner’s Office has jurisdiction over the body and things associated with the death. Legal jurisdiction over the rest of the death scene lies with the responding police or deputy. Law enforcement officers on the scene may be a resource in helping you with security questions and concerns.

9. What happens during the autopsy?

1. The examination of the body. Sometimes this reveals an injury or disease that can be seen such as an aneurysm, a fracture, or a gunshot wound. Some causes of death are not visible and may not be apparent at the time of autopsy.

2. The histology, or “slides.” When an autopsy is performed several small tissue samples are normally taken and sent out to be prepared, and then returned as slides for microscopic examination. This normally takes seven to ten working days to process. The doctor will view these slides for signs of infection, injury, or disease and include these findings in the autopsy report.

3. A toxicology report. In most cases we request a toxicology analysis from the Washington State Toxicology Lab in Seattle. This typically involves sending blood and urine samples to the lab which then screens the samples for selected medications as well as common drugs of abuse and returns a report to our office. This process currently takes approximately eight to ten weeks, depending on the lab’s work load, staffing, and the complexity of the results.

10. What if I need more time to select a funeral home?

We recognize that this is a stressful time. However, due to the limited space in our facility, and out of consideration for other families that have similar needs, we ask that you call our office 509-477-2296 for assistance if you cannot make a funeral home decision in the first two or three days.

11. What if I want an autopsy, but the Medical Examiner doesn’t want to do one?

If the Medical Examiner declines to do an autopsy the family may, at their own expense, pursue a private autopsy. Typically, this involves contacting a private pathology service and paying a fee for their service.

12. Where can I get help with clean up of a residence after a death?

Crime scene clean-up involves the cleaning up of bio-hazardous material, such as blood, tissue, and/or other bodily fluids. This may mean the biologically contaminated scene of a violent death such as homicide, suicide, accident, or in deaths in which decomposition has begun to occur.

Special knowledge is required to safely handle bio-hazardous material; the companies that handle crime scene clean up have the training to handle such scenes and all hazardous materials.

For a listing of local and regional Bio-Hazard Cleaning Services, visit our Bio-Hazard Cleaning Services Page.

13. Where will the body be taken?

The body will be transported to the Forensic Institute (the county morgue facility) located at Holy Family Hospital. To ensure privacy of families and individuals involved in our investigations, the dignity of their loved ones, and to preserve the easily compromised medicolegal evidence that may be present in the various cases we handle, we regret that we cannot allow public access or viewing in our facility. Viewing of the body can be arranged later with your funeral home. In some deaths, when it is unlikely that an autopsy will be performed, the body may be released to a funeral home as directed by the family without an autopsy.

14. Who are the people removing the body?

The Medical Examiner’s Office contracts with Lilac City Transport, a private company, to provide transportation services to the county morgue facility at Holy Family Hospital.

15. Why do an autopsy?

An autopsy is performed at the discretion of the Medical Examiner in order to determine the cause and manner of death when the death may have been accidental, the result of a suicide or homicide, or otherwise falls under our jurisdiction. An autopsy can tell us what happened, and sometimes just as importantly, what didn’t happen.

An autopsy generates a legal document that can be used in court for insurance claims, to settle estates, and so on. Autopsy findings may also provide peace of mind to a family who may also have questions about the circumstances resulting in the death of their loved one.

16. Will an autopsy effect funeral preparations?

In most cases the results of an autopsy examination will not be visible or noticeable during a funeral.

17. Will an autopsy delay the funeral?

Generally, as long as the body is positively identified and you have told us which funeral home to call, we can release the body to the funeral home as soon as the autopsy is completed.