For Legal Professionals
How to Request a Report (Legal Professionals)
You may request a copy of the final Report of Examination by sending an original or photocopied standard medical information release form or an OME Records Release Form that has a notarized signature of the next-of-kin and is dated within the previous 90 days. A copy of a Report of Examination, which includes toxicology results, requires a fee of $35 paid in advance (make checks payable to the Utah Medical Examiner's Office). Requests along with the check can be mailed to our office.
Additional records regarding the case are kept in the case file at our office and are available upon proper request and the payment of additional fees, depending on the documents. Records provided cannot include records that the medical examiner obtains from a third party in the course of investigating the decedent's death. Call (801-816-3850) or email to inquire as to the applicable fees. There are no fees for records requested by a county attorney, a district attorney, a criminal defense attorney, or other law enforcement official with jurisdiction over the death.
Records maintained by the OME are not public records nor do they fall under GRAMA guidelines. A Subpoena Duces Tecum is an invalid method of requesting records from us. Release of OME records to a third party is only possible by means of a notarized release from the next-of-kin or legal representative or a court order issued by a Utah court.
Print a Records Request Form here
Consultation and Testimony
Testimony, Consultation and Expert Witness Fees
Consultation and testimony for criminal proceedings falling under OME jurisdiction are free of charge for both prosecution and defense council. Please schedule an appointment when requesting a pre-trial conference.
Deaths occurring on federal lands that result in criminal proceedings will incur a fee of $500/hr. for preparation, consultation, travel and testimony as outlined by the State of Utah Fee Schedule.
For providing testimony in a non-criminal proceeding or in out-of-state criminal hearings, there will be an hourly fee for preparation, consultation, travel and testimony at the rate of $500/hr as outlined by the State of Utah Fee Schedule. This fee is for services provided by the OME and is not paid to the consulting physician. Checks should be made payable to the Utah Medical Examiner’s Office.
Out of State Transport and Cremation Clearance
If you are planning cremation or removal of remains from the State of Utah, a cremation permit/transit permit and a review of the Death Certificate by the Office of the Medical Examiner is required as per Utah Code 26-4-29. This review is done daily by investigators with the Office of the Medical Examiner. If there are no issues noted during the review, the death certificate will be cleared for cremation or removal. If there are any issues noted, a hold will be placed on the death certificate and an investigation will be started by the Office of the Medical Examiner.
International Transport/Contagious Disease Letter
If a body is to be transported out of the country, you will be asked to provide a letter that the body is free of contagion and can be transported across borders. If you need this letter, notify us as soon as possible so that we can generate this letter before the body is released from this office. If there are any additional stipulations that need to be included in the letter please notify us.
The letters will simply state we examined the body of (name) on (date) at the Office of the Medical Examiner in Salt Lake City and we found no evidence of a contagious process that would prevent travel across international borders.
Release of Bodies and Personal Effects
Unless retained by our office for evidence purposes, all personal effects which were received with the body will be released with the body. It is up to you, in consultation with the family, if soiled items are returned or destroyed. Valuables are locked in a separate section of the office accessible only during regular business hours.
Corrections to Death Certificate Information
If you find that information has been entered incorrectly or find omissions on the death certificate, please call our main number 801-816-3850. If it is not necessary to speak directly with the physician that signed the death certificate, please leave a detailed message with our office staff and they will bring it to the attention of the doctor. Some corrections can be made by any of the OME doctors but this will be guided by the availability of the certifying doctor and the type of correction needed.