Kansas Statutes

Chapter 65: Public Health

Article 9: Use Of Dead Bodies By Medical School

Statutes:

• 65-901: Certain unclaimed dead bodies; use for medical, surgical and anatomical science.
• 65-902:
• 65-902a: Delivery of unclaimed bodies to medical school; notice; expenses; receipts; records.
• 65-902b: Burial at expense of person failing to notify or deliver; recovery.
• 65-903: Use of bodies; burial.
• 65-904: When bodies not to be delivered to medical school; burial by relatives or friends; unclaimed body of deceased inmate.
• 65-905: Penalty for violations.

• 65-901: Certain unclaimed dead bodies; use for medical, surgical and anatomical science. It shall be lawful for the chairman or head of the department of anatomy of the medical school of the university of Kansas, to claim and receive the dead body of any person required to be delivered under K.S.A. 65-902a, which would otherwise be buried at public expense or on grounds reserved exclusively for pauper dead; such body to be used within the state for the purpose of the advancement of medical, surgical and anatomical science and study, and the instruction of medical students.

        History:   L. 1897, ch. 158, § 1; R.S. 1923, 65-901; L. 1951, ch. 359, § 2; June 30.

• 65-902:

        History:   L. 1897, ch. 158, § 2; R.S. 1923, 65-902; Repealed, L. 1951, ch. 359, § 7; June 30.

• 65-902a: Delivery of unclaimed bodies to medical school; notice; expenses; receipts; records. It is hereby made the duty of each coroner or any other officer having charge or control over unclaimed dead human bodies which would otherwise be buried at public expense or on grounds reserved exclusively for pauper dead to notify immediately the chairman or head of the department of anatomy of the medical school of the university of Kansas, whenever any such body or bodies come into his possession, charge or control; and shall, without fee or reward, upon receipt of notice from the chairman or head of such department, release to the same, within seventy-two (72) hours after death, except those coroners' cases in which more time may be required, and permit said chairman or his agent to take and remove all such bodies for use within the state for the advancement of medical, surgical and anatomical science. All expenses in connection with the delivery of any such body to the department of anatomy of the medical school of the university of Kansas shall be paid by said department. Such notice shall be given in all cases, but no such body shall be so released if any relative or friend accept such body for burial pursuant to the provisions of K.S.A. 65-904; nor shall any dead body of any honorably discharged soldier, sailor or marine of the United States or other person whose burial is provided for under the provisions of article 2 of chapter 73 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, be so delivered, but in such cases burial shall be made in accordance with such statutes.

        Upon receiving notice of the death of any person, coming within the provisions of this act, the chairman or head of the department of anatomy of the university of Kansas shall within thirty-six (36) hours after such notice has been given authorize some person to receive the body and to transport it to the medical school of the university of Kansas. A receipt for the body shall be given to the person delivering same, which receipt shall be dated and entered in a book to be kept by said medical school and which record shall be open to public inspection. Such record shall be kept by register number of all bodies received. If the body is not needed, the chairman or head of said department shall so inform the proper officer, and the body shall receive decent burial; and if, within forty-eight (48) hours after notice has been given, said department does not notify the sender of such notice that the body is to be claimed, then said medical school shall be deemed to have waived all claims to such body.

        History:   L. 1951, ch. 359, § 3; L. 1953, ch. 287, § 1; L. 1965, ch. 164, § 8; June 30.

• 65-902b: Burial at expense of person failing to notify or deliver; recovery. Whenever, through the failure of any person to notify or deliver a dead body as required by this act, such body shall become unfit for anatomical purposes, and such fact is so certified to the board of county commissioners of the proper county by the chairman or head of said department, such body shall be buried at the expense of the person so failing to notify or deliver such body as required by this act, and if such expenses are paid by the county, such county may bring an action to recover same.

        History:   L. 1951, ch. 359, § 4; June 30.

• 65-903: Use of bodies; burial. Such bodies shall be used only for the promotion of medical and surgical science within the state of Kansas. The remains after serving such purpose shall receive decent burial.

        History:   L. 1897, ch. 158, § 3; R.S. 1923, 65-903; L. 1951, ch. 359, § 5; L. 1967, ch. 434, § 17; July 1.

• 65-904: When bodies not to be delivered to medical school; burial by relatives or friends; unclaimed body of deceased inmate. (a) Except as provided by subsection (b), if the deceased person during such person's last sickness requests to be buried, or if burial is provided for under article 3 of chapter 73 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated or acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto, the body shall not be surrendered, but shall be buried in the usual manner. No body shall be delivered as provided in K.S.A. 65-902a and amendments thereto, if claimed by relatives or friends within 72 hours after death, nor shall a body be delivered as provided in K.S.A. 65-902a and amendments thereto unless the person or persons in charge of the deceased at the time of death have made diligent search for relatives or friends and no response to the search has been received within 96 hours after the commencement of such search. No dead body received by the department of anatomy of the medical school of the university of Kansas under the provisions of this act shall be dissected prior to 60 days after date of receipt of the dead body. In case the remains of any person so delivered and received shall be claimed within 60 days by any relative or friend, they shall be given to such relative or friend for interment.

        (b)   The unclaimed body of a deceased inmate in the custody of the secretary of corrections may be cremated at the expense of the department of corrections.

        History:   L. 1897, ch. 158, § 4; R.S. 1923, 65-904; L. 1951, ch. 359, § 6; L. 1997, ch. 179, § 8; May 22.

• 65-905: Penalty for violations. Every person who shall deliver up a body of any deceased person in violation of or contrary to the provisions of this act, and any person who shall receive such body knowing the same to have been delivered contrary to any of the provisions of this act, or any person who shall refuse or neglect to comply with any of the conditions of this act, shall each and any of them be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than two hundred dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not exceeding one year.

        History:   L. 1897, ch. 158, § 5; May 8; R.S. 1923, 65-905.