HCSD — Standard Operating Procedures

1005.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE

This policy details the legal mandates and additional requirements of the Deputy Coroner and other Coroner Division members when investigating the death of an unidentified person.

1005.2 DEFINITION

An unidentified person is defined as any decedent whose identity is either unknown or has not yet been confirmed in conformity with Policy 1101 of this manual.

1005.3 TEMPORARY IDENTIFIER

All unidentified males shall be referred to and labeled as "John Doe" until he is positively identified. All unidentified females shall be referred to and labeled as "Jane Doe" until she is positively identified.

1005.3.1 DOE NUMBERS

Each decedent that remains unidentified beyond the assigned Deputy Coroner's reasonable attempts at identification, shall also be identified using the assigned case number. This number shall be listed in the coroner log as the middle name.

• Example: "John 202409999 Doe"

1005.4 INVESTIGATION

When investigating the death of an unidentified person, the Deputy Coroner shall make every effort to conduct a thorough investigation in attempt to locate any evidence that will assist with identification. This includes but is not limited to:

• Searching the decedent's person, residence, vehicle, and any other surrounding area that may contain evidence such as identification cards, medical or dental records, vital documents, address books, letters, etc. This search shall be performed within the parameters of the 4th amendment.
• Interviewing witnesses for potential leads as to the decedent's identity.
• Follow-up investigation as determined by case circumstances.

1. Examples include contacting local law enforcement agencies for missing persons reports or canvassing the death location and surrounding area.

1005.5 BODY EXAMINATION

In addition to performing the standard body examination, the Deputy Coroner shall search for and document and/or photograph, with a scale, the following:

• Gender
• Apparent race
• Estimated age
• Hair color
• Eye color
• Glasses or contacts
• Facial Hair
• Dentition
• Jewelry
• Scars
• Marks
• Tattoos
• Amputations
• Clothing

1. Clothing description shall include color, size, and brand of each item.

• The location of the remains, with as many specific facts as possible.
• Observations pertinent to the estimation of the time of death
• Any other unique or potentially significant detail regarding the decedent's physical features or appearance

1005.6 INITIAL FORENSIC PROCESSING

In addition to the standard body intake procedure(s), the Deputy Coroner shall be responsible for the following additional tasks when processing an unidentified person:

• Taking both frontal and lateral facial photographs, with scale.
• Taking postmortem full body x-rays.
• Obtaining dental X-rays Federal DOJ Notification

1005.7 DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE NOTIFICATION

The Deputy Coroner shall report the death of any unidentified person to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for entry into the National Crime Information Center database. This notification shall be performed via Teletype transmittal or personal notification to DOJ personnel within 10 calendar days from the date the body or remains were discovered.

1005.8 PRESS RELEASE

Within a reasonable amount of time and when case circumstances dictate, the Deputy Coroner shall draft a press release including a brief summary of the death circumstances, a description of the unidentified person, and contact information for the Coroner Division Facility. The Deputy Coroner shall submit the draft to the Coroner, who shall in turn finalize and submit to the public information officer for dissemination to various media outlets as needed.

• For homicide deaths of unidentified persons, the Deputy Coroner shall obtain the approval of the investigating law enforcement agency prior to the dissemination of any press release.

1005.9 DENTAL EXAMINATION

If case circumstances dictate, the Deputy Coroner shall contact the contract Odontologist to arrange for dental examination of the decedent. Dental x-rays, charting, and other reports shall be submitted to DOJ within 45 calendar days from the date the body or remains were discovered.

1005.10 ANTHROPOLOGY EXAMINATION

When case circumstances dictate, the Deputy Coroner shall contact an Anthropologist for examination of the remains.

1005.11 COLLECTION OF DNA SAMPLES

The Deputy Coroner shall collect DNA samples, including but not limited to tissue, hair, or body fluids, from any unidentified person and submit samples to DOJ within 90 days from the date the body or remains were discovered.

1005.12 FINAL REPORT

If the decedent remains unidentified after all tests and examinations have been completed, the Deputy Coroner shall prepare and submit a final report of investigation to DOJ within 180 days from the date the body or remains were discovered.

• This report shall include all available test results, examination reports, artist's sketches, and x-rays, along with the appropriate DOJ Unidentified Deceased Reporting Form

1005.13 FINAL DISPOSITION

If the decedent has yet to be identified 365 days from the date the body or remains were discovered, the Deputy Coroner may arrange for final disposition of the remains, with the Coroner. The Deputy Coroner shall extract the jaws (maxilla and mandilla, with teeth) prior to release of the remains for cremation or burial. Pursuant to Government Code 27521(f), the jaws shall be retained indefinitely, or one year after positive identification is made.

1005.14 CASE MANAGEMENT - LONG TERM UNIDENTIFIED PERSONS

If the decedent has yet to be identified 365 days from the date the body or remains were discovered, the Deputy Coroner may submit the case file to the Coroner for final review. The Coroner will transition the file for long-term maintenance.

1005.15 UPDATES TO DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REPORT

If any test or examination described in this policy results in the discovery of new information about the unidentified decedent's description or demographics, the Deputy Coroner shall be responsible for informing DOJ by submitting an updated Teletype transmittal.

1005.16 NOTIFICATIONS WHEN AN UNIDENTIFIED PERSON IS IDENTIFIED

If/when an unidentified person is identified, the Deputy Coroner shall be responsible for making all appropriate notifications to the decedent's next-of-kin, Coroner Division personnel, local law enforcement agencies, CAL-ID, DOJ, and any other involved or interested entities.

Reportable Deaths