BILL NUMBER: AB 2029 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 28, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Cooley
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
An act to amend Section 27491.41 Sections
27491 and 27491.4 of , and to add Section 27491.42 to,
the Government Code, and to amend Section 13519.3 of the
Penal Code, relating to inquests.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2029, as amended, Cooley. Inquests: sudden infant
death syndrome. sudden unexpected death in childhood.
Existing
(1) Existing law states that the
Legislature finds and declares that sudden infant death syndrome
(SIDS), as defined, is the leading cause of death for children under
age one. Under existing law, the coroner has a duty to inquire
into and determine the circumstances, manner, and cause of, among
other things, deaths where the suspected cause of death is sudden
infant death syndrome. The coroner is required to
, among other things, perform an autopsy, within
24 hours or as soon thereafter as feasible, in any case where an
infant has died suddenly and unexpectedly. The coroner is
required to conduct the autopsy pursuant to protocols developed by
the State Department of Public Health and is authorized to take
tissue samples for research purposes from infants who have died su
ddenly and unexpectedly. The department is required to
establish procedures and protocols for access by researchers to any
tissues, other materials, or data that is collected. Existing law
authorizes a person to conduct research on those tissues, other
materials, or data if he or she has a valid scientific purpose and
receives prior approval from the State Committee for the Protection
of Human Subjects. Under existing law, it is a misdemeanor for a
funeral director, physician, or other person who has charge of a
deceased person's body to not immediately notify the coroner if death
occurred as a result of any of the causes or circumstances that the
coroner has a duty to inquire into.
This bill would expand the duty of the coroner to also inquire
into and determine the circumstances, manner, and cause of deaths
where a child, who is one year of age or older but under 18 years of
age, dies suddenly and unexpectedly or where the suspected cause of
death is sudden unexpected death in childhood. This bill would define
"sudden unexpected death in childhood" as the sudden death of a
child one year of age or older but under 18 years of age that is
unexpected by the history of the child and where a thorough
postmortem examination fails to demonstrate an adequate cause of
death. This bill would require the coroner to perform an autopsy
within 24 hours or as soon thereafter as feasible in any case where a
child has died suddenly and unexpectedly. This bill would also
require the coroner to conduct the autopsy pursuant to protocols
developed by the department and would authorize the coroner to take
tissue samples for research purposes from children who have died
suddenly and unexpectedly. This bill would require the department to
establish procedures and protocols for access by researchers to any
tissues, other materials, or data that is collected, and would
authorize a person to conduct research on those tissues, other
materials, or data if he or she has a valid scientific purpose and
receives prior approval from the State Committee for the Protection
of Human Subjects. This bill would exempt the coroner from liability
for damages in a civil action for any act or omission done in
compliance with a specified statute.
By expanding the duties of a local agency and expanding the scope
of an existing crime, this bill would create a state-mandated local
program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no
reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that,
if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains
costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall
be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
(2) Existing law requires the Commission on Peace Officer
Standards and Training to establish a course on the nature of sudden
infant death syndrome and the handling of cases involving the sudden
deaths of infants. The commission is also required to prepare
guidelines establishing standard procedures for the investigation of
cases involving sudden deaths of infants.
This bill would require the commission to include information on
sudden unexpected death in childhood in the established course and to
prepare guidelines establishing standard procedures for the
investigation of cases involving sudden and unexpected deaths of
children.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those
provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no
yes .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 27491 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
27491. It shall be the duty of the coroner to inquire into and
determine the circumstances, manner, and cause of all violent,
sudden, or unusual deaths; unattended deaths; deaths where the
deceased has not been attended by either a physician or a registered
nurse, who is a member of a hospice care interdisciplinary team, as
defined by subdivision (e) of Section 1746 of the Health and Safety
Code in the 20 days before death; deaths related to or following
known or suspected self-induced or criminal abortion; known or
suspected homicide, suicide, or accidental poisoning; deaths known or
suspected as resulting in whole or in part from or related to
accident or injury either old or recent; deaths due to drowning,
fire, hanging, gunshot, stabbing, cutting, exposure, starvation,
acute alcoholism, drug addiction, strangulation, aspiration, or where
the suspected cause of death is sudden infant death syndrome;
deaths where a child, who is one year of age or older but under 18
years of age, dies suddenly and unexpectedly, or where the suspected
cause of death is sudden unexpected death in childhood; death
in whole or in part occasioned by criminal means; deaths associated
with a known or alleged rape or crime against nature; deaths in
prison or while under sentence; deaths known or suspected as due to
contagious disease and constituting a public hazard; deaths from
occupational diseases or occupational hazards; deaths of patients in
state mental hospitals serving the mentally disabled and operated by
the State Department of State Hospitals; deaths of patients in state
hospitals serving the developmentally disabled and operated by the
State Department of Developmental Services; deaths under such
circumstances as to afford a reasonable ground to suspect that the
death was caused by the criminal act of another; and any deaths
reported by physicians or other persons having knowledge of death for
inquiry by coroner. Inquiry pursuant to this section does not
include those investigative functions usually performed by other law
enforcement agencies.
In any case in which the coroner conducts an inquiry pursuant to
this section, the coroner or a deputy shall personally sign the
certificate of death. If the death occurred in a state hospital, the
coroner shall forward a copy of his or her report to the state agency
responsible for the state hospital.
The coroner shall have discretion to determine the extent of
inquiry to be made into any death occurring under natural
circumstances and falling within the provisions of this section, and
if inquiry determines that the physician of record has sufficient
knowledge to reasonably state the cause of a death occurring under
natural circumstances, the coroner may authorize that physician to
sign the certificate of death.
For the purpose of inquiry, the coroner shall have the right to
exhume the body of a deceased person when necessary to discharge the
responsibilities set forth in this section.
Any funeral director, physician, or other person who has charge of
a deceased person's body, when death occurred as a result of any of
the causes or circumstances described in this section, shall
immediately notify the coroner. Any person who does not notify the
coroner as required by this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.
SEC. 2. Section 27491.4 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
27491.4. (a) For purposes of inquiry the coroner shall, within 24
hours or as soon as feasible thereafter, where the suspected cause
of death is sudden infant death syndrome or sudden unexpected
death in childhood, and, in all other cases, the coroner may,
in his or her discretion, take possession of the body, which shall
include the authority to exhume the body, order it removed to a
convenient place, and make or cause to be made a postmortem
examination or autopsy thereon, and make or cause to be made an
analysis of the stomach, stomach contents, blood, organs, fluids, or
tissues of the body. The detailed medical findings resulting from an
inspection of the body or autopsy by an examining physician shall be
either reduced to writing or permanently preserved on recording discs
or other similar recording media, shall include all positive and
negative findings pertinent to establishing the cause of death in
accordance with medicolegal practice and this, along with the written
opinions and conclusions of the examining physician, shall be
included in the coroner's record of the death. The coroner shall have
the right to retain only those tissues of the body removed at the
time of the autopsy as may, in his or her opinion, be necessary or
advisable to the inquiry into the case, or for the verification of
his or her findings. No person may be present during the performance
of a coroner's autopsy without the express consent of the coroner.
(b) In any case in which the coroner knows, or has reason to
believe, that the deceased has made valid provision for the
disposition of his or her body or a part or parts thereof for medical
or scientific purposes in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 7150) of Part 1 of Division 7 of the Health and Safety
Code, the coroner shall neither perform nor authorize any other
person to perform an autopsy on the body unless the coroner has
contacted or attempted to contact the physician last in attendance to
the deceased. If the physician cannot be contacted, the coroner
shall then notify or attempt to notify one of the following of the
need for an autopsy to determine the cause of death: (1) the
surviving spouse; (2) a surviving child or parent; (3) a surviving
brother or sister; (4) any other kin or person who has acquired the
right to control the disposition of the remains. Following a period
of 24 hours after attempting to contact the physician last in
attendance and notifying or attempting to notify one of the
responsible parties listed above, the coroner may perform or
authorize the performance of an autopsy, as otherwise authorized or
required by law.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit the
discretion of the coroner to conduct autopsies upon any victim of
sudden, unexpected, or unexplained death or any death known or
suspected of resulting from an accident, suicide, or apparent
criminal means, or other death, as described in Section 27491.
SEC. 3. Section 27491.42 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
27491.42. (a) For purposes of this article, "sudden unexpected
death in childhood" means the sudden death of a child one year of age
or older but under 18 years of age that is unexpected by the history
of the child and where a thorough postmortem examination fails to
demonstrate an adequate cause of death.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) Sudden unexpected death in childhood accounts for 1.2 deaths
out of every 100,000 children.
(2) Most deaths from sudden unexpected death in childhood occur
between one year of age and three years of age, but researchers have
studied cases of children as old as 15 years of age.
(3) Sudden unexpected death in childhood cannot be predicted or
prevented because the cause of sudden unexpected death in childhood
is unknown.
(4) The public interest is served by research and study of sudden
unexpected death in childhood, and its potential causes and
indications.
(c) (1) To facilitate these purposes, the coroner shall, within 24
hours, or as soon thereafter as feasible, perform an autopsy in any
case where a child, who is one year of age or older but under 18
years of age, has died suddenly and unexpectedly.
(2) However, if the attending physician desires to certify that
the cause of death is sudden unexpected death in childhood, an
autopsy may be performed at the discretion of the coroner. If the
coroner performs an autopsy pursuant to this section, he or she shall
certify the cause of death.
(d) The autopsy shall be conducted pursuant to a standardized
protocol developed by the State Department of Public Health. The
protocol is exempt from procedural requirements pertaining to the
adoption of administrative rules and regulations pursuant to Article
5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5 of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. The protocol shall be
developed and approved by January 1, 2016.
(e) The protocol shall be followed by all coroners throughout the
state when conducting autopsies required by this section. The coroner
shall state on the certificate of death that sudden unexpected death
in childhood was the cause of death when the coroner's findings are
consistent with the definition of sudden unexpected death in
childhood specified in the standardized autopsy protocol. The
protocol may include requirements and standards for scene
investigations, requirements for specific data, criteria for
ascertaining cause of death based on the autopsy, criteria for any
specific tissue sampling, and any other requirements. The protocol
may also require that specific tissue samples be provided to a
central tissue repository designated by the State Department of
Public Health.
(f) The State Department of Public Health shall establish
procedures and protocols for access by researchers to any tissues or
other material, or data authorized by this section. Research may be
conducted by an individual with a valid scientific interest and prior
approval from the State Committee for the Protection of Human
Subjects. The tissue samples, the materials, and all data shall be
subject to the confidentiality requirements of Section 103850 of the
Health and Safety Code.
(g) The coroner may take tissue samples for research purposes from
children who have died suddenly and unexpectedly without consent of
the responsible adult if the tissue removal is not likely to result
in any visible disfigurement. The coroner shall notify the parent or
responsible adult of the child about the importance of taking tissue
samples.
(h) A coroner shall not be liable for damages in a civil action
for any act or omission in compliance with this section.
(i) The consent of any person is not required prior to undertaking
the autopsy required by this section.
SEC. 4. Section 13519.3 of the Penal
Code is amended to read:
13519.3. (a) Effective July 1, 1990, the commission shall
establish, for those peace officers specified in subdivision (a) of
Section 13510 who are assigned to patrol or investigations, a course
on the nature of sudden infant death syndrome and sudden
unexpected death in childhood, and the handling of cases
involving the sudden deaths of infants and the sudden unexpected
deaths of children . The course shall include information on
the community resources available to assist families and child care
providers who have lost a child to sudden infant death syndrome
and sudden unexpected death in childhood . Officers who are
employed after January 1, 1990, shall complete a course in sudden
infant death syndrome and sudden unexpected
death in childhood prior to the issuance of the Peace
Officer Standards and Training basic certificate, and shall complete
training on this topic those topics on
or before July 1, 1992.
(b) The commission, in consultation with experts in the field of
sudden infant death syndrome and sudden unexpected death in
childhood , shall prepare guidelines establishing standard
procedures which may be followed by law enforcement agencies in the
investigation of cases involving sudden deaths of infants and
sudden unexpected deaths of children .
(c) The course relating to sudden infant death syndrome and
sudden unexpected death in childhood, and the handling of cases
of sudden infant deaths and sudden unexpected deaths of
children shall be developed by the commission in consultation
with experts in the field of sudden infant death syndrome and
sudden unexpected death in childhood . The course shall include
instruction in the standard procedures developed pursuant to
subdivision (b). In addition, the course shall include information on
the nature of sudden infant death syndrome and sudden
unexpected death in childhood, which shall be taught by experts
in the field of sudden infant death syndrome and
sudden unexpected death in childhood .
(d) The commission shall review and modify the basic course
curriculum to include sudden infant death syndrome and sudden
unexpected death in childhood awareness as part of death
investigation training.
(e) When the instruction and training are provided by a local
agency, a fee shall be charged sufficient to defray the entire cost
of instruction and training.
SEC. 5. No reimbursement is required by this act
pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution for certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency
or school district because, in that regard, this act creates a new
crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the
penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section
17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime
within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.
However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of
Title 2 of the Government Code.
SECTION 1. Section 27491.41 of the Government
Code is amended to read:
27491.41. (a) For purposes of this section, "sudden infant death
syndrome" means the sudden death of any infant that is unexpected by
the history of the infant and where a thorough postmortem examination
fails to demonstrate an adequate cause of death.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares that sudden infant death
syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death for children under age
one, striking one out of every 500 children. The Legislature finds
and declares that sudden infant death syndrome is a serious problem
within the State of California, and that public interest is served by
research and study of sudden infant death syndrome, and its
potential causes and indications.
(c) (1) To facilitate these purposes, the coroner shall, within 24
hours or as soon thereafter as feasible, perform an autopsy in any
case where an infant has died suddenly and unexpectedly.
(2) However, if the attending physician desires to certify that
the cause of death is sudden infant death syndrome, an autopsy may be
performed at the discretion of the coroner. If the coroner performs
an autopsy pursuant to this section, he or she shall also certify the
cause of death.
(d) The autopsy shall be conducted pursuant to a standardized
protocol developed by the State Department of Public Health. The
protocol is exempt from the procedural requirements pertaining to the
adoption of administrative rules and regulations pursuant to Article
5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5 of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. The protocol shall be
developed and approved by July 1, 1990.
(e) The protocol shall be followed by all coroners throughout the
state when conducting the autopsies required by this section. The
coroner shall state on the certificate of death that sudden infant
death syndrome was the cause of death when the coroner's findings are
consistent with the definition of sudden infant death syndrome
specified in the standardized autopsy protocol. The protocol may
include requirements and standards for scene investigations,
requirements for specific data, criteria for ascertaining cause of
death based on the autopsy, and criteria for any specific tissue
sampling, and any other requirements. The protocol may also require
that specific tissue samples shall be provided to a central tissue
repository designated by the State Department of Public Health.
(f) The State Department of Public Health shall establish
procedures and protocols for access by researchers to any tissues, or
other materials or data authorized by this section. Research may be
conducted by an individual with a valid scientific interest and prior
approval from the State Committee for the Protection of Human
Subjects. The tissue samples, the materials, and all data shall be
subject to the confidentiality requirements of Section 103850 of the
Health and Safety Code.
(g) The coroner may take tissue samples for research purposes from
infants who have died suddenly and unexpectedly without consent of
the responsible adult if the tissue removal is not likely to result
in any visible disfigurement.
(h) A coroner shall not be liable for damages in a civil action
for any act or omission done in compliance with this section.
(i) The consent of a person is not required prior to undertaking
the autopsy required by this section.