Rhode Island § 23-4-10 - Office of State Medical Examiners

§ 23-4-10. Disposition of deceased bodies.

(a) The office of state medical examiners shall, after any postmortem external examination or any autopsy, promptly release the deceased body to the relatives, representatives, or domestic partners or other persons authorized by law to make arrangements for the disposition of the decedent’s remains. The cost of transporting the deceased body to the office of state medical examiners shall be borne by the state if the autopsy was required to be performed as provided in this chapter. If the relatives, representatives, or domestic partners of the decedent or other person authorized by law to make arrangements for the disposition of the decedent’s remains:

(1) Fails or refuses to claim the body within fourteen (14) days of receiving notice of the death of the decedent; or

(2) Fails or refuses to make arrangements with a funeral home for the removal of the body from the state medical examiner’s morgue within thirty (30) days of receiving notice of the death of the decedent, then the body shall be deemed unclaimed and shall be buried in accordance with § 40-6-3.10. If there are no known relatives, representatives or domestic partners, after reasonable public notices, the body shall be deemed unclaimed and the office of state medical examiners shall cause the body of the deceased person to be buried in accordance with § 40-6-3.10. The general treasurer of the state shall have first priority in recovering the expenses of burial from the estate of the deceased person.

(b) For the purpose of this chapter, “domestic partner” shall be defined as a person who, prior to the decedent’s death, was in an exclusive, intimate, and committed relationship with the decedent, and who certifies by affidavit that their relationship met the following qualifications:

(1) Both partners were at least eighteen (18) years of age and were mentally competent to contract;

(2) Neither partner is married to anyone else;

(3) Partners were not related by blood to a degree that would prohibit marriage in the state of Rhode Island;

(4) Partners resided together and had resided together for at least one year at the time of death; and

(5) Partners were financially interdependent as evidenced by at least two (2) of the following:

(i) Domestic partnership agreement or relationship contract;

(ii) Joint mortgage or joint ownership of primary residence;

(iii) Two (2) of the following:

(A) Joint ownership of motor vehicle;

(B) Joint checking account;

(C) Joint credit account;

(D) Joint lease; and/or

(iv) The domestic partner had been designated as a beneficiary for the decedent’s will, retirement contract, or life insurance.