Bill Text: MS HB1737 | 2026 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Inmate deaths; require autopsy reports be provided to certain elected officials.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Failed) 2026-02-03 - Died In Committee [HB1737 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2026-HB1737-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2026 Regular Session
To: Corrections
By: Representative Currie
House Bill 1737
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 47-5-151, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN AN AUTOPSY IS PERFORMED ON A STATE INMATE, A COPY OF THE AUTOPSY REPORT SHALL BE PROVIDED TO THE GOVERNOR, LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR AND THE CHAIRPERSONS OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE CORRECTIONS COMMITTEES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 47-5-151, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
47-5-151. The
superintendent (warden) or other person in charge of prisoners, upon the death
of any prisoner under his care and control, shall at once notify the county
medical examiner or county medical examiner investigator (hereinafter "medical
examiner") of the county in which * * * the prisoner died, of the death of
the prisoner, and it shall be the duty of such medical examiner, when so
notified of the death of such person, to obtain a court order and notify the
State Medical Examiner of the death of such prisoner. It shall be mandatory
that the State Medical Examiner cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body
of the deceased prisoner. Furthermore, the State Medical Examiner shall
investigate any case where a person is found dead on the premises of the
correctional system, in accordance with Sections 41-61-51 through 41-61-79.
The State Medical Examiner shall make a written report of his investigation,
and shall furnish a copy of the same, including the autopsy report, to the
superintendent (warden) and a copy of the same to the district attorney of the
county in which * * *
the prisoner died as well as to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and
the Chairpersons of the House and Senate Corrections Committees. The copy
so furnished to the district attorney shall be turned over by the district
attorney to the grand jury, and it shall be the duty of the grand jury, if
there be any suspicion of wrongdoing shown by the inquest papers, to thoroughly
investigate the cause of such death.
It shall be the duty of the
medical examiner of the county in which * * * the prisoner died to arrange for
the remains to be transported to the State Medical Examiner for * * * such autopsy, and accompanying the
remains shall be the court order for autopsy and any documents or records
pertaining to the deceased prisoner, institutional health records or other
information relating to the circumstances surrounding the prisoner's death.
The State Medical Examiner shall arrange for the remains to be transported to
the county in which * * *
such prisoner died following completion of the autopsy. If the remains
are not claimed for burial within forty-eight (48) hours after autopsy, then * * * the remains may be delivered to the
University of Mississippi Medical Center for use in medical research or
anatomical study.
The provisions herein set forth in the first paragraph shall likewise apply to any case in which any person is found dead on the premises of the Mississippi State Penitentiary except that the autopsy to be performed on the body of such a person shall not be mandatory upon a person who is not a prisoner unless the medical examiner determines that the death resulted from circumstances raising questions as to the cause of death, in which case the medical examiner may cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body of such deceased person in the same manner as authorized to be performed upon the body of a deceased prisoner.
Provided further, that the provisions herein shall apply with respect to any deceased prisoner who at the time of death is being detained by duly constituted state authority such as the Oakley Youth Development Center, Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield, East Mississippi State Hospital, or any other state institution.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to a prisoner who was lawfully executed as provided in Sections 99-19-49 through 99-19-55.
Any officer or employee of the prison system or any other officer, employee or person having charge of any prisoner who shall fail to immediately notify the medical examiner of the death of such prisoner, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) and by confinement in the county jail for not more than one (1) year.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.
