Miss. Code Ann. § 41-61-53: Miss. Code Ann. § 41-61-53

For the purposes of Sections 41-61-51 through 41-61-79 , the following definitions shall apply:

(a) “ Certification of death ” means signing the death certificate.

(b) “ Coroner ” means the elected county official provided for in Sections 19-21-101 through 19-21-107 .

(c) “ County medical examiner investigator ” means a nonphysician coroner or deputy coroner trained to investigate and certify deaths affecting the public interest.

(d) “ County medical examiner ” means a licensed physician who is a coroner or deputy coroner trained to investigate and certify deaths affecting the public interest.

(e) “ Death affecting the public interest ” means any death of a human being where the circumstances are sudden, unexpected, violent, suspicious or unattended.

(f) “ Medical examiner ” means the medical examiner system which is composed of the State Medical Examiner, county medical examiners and county medical examiner investigators collectively, and is a jurisdictional identifier, not a title, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(g) “ Medical examiner investigator ” means a nonphysician appointed, trained and supervised by the State Medical Examiner to investigate and assist with the certification of deaths affecting the public interest.

(h) “ Pronouncement of death ” means the statement of opinion that life has ceased for an individual.

(i) “ State Medical Examiner ” means the person appointed by the Commissioner of Public Safety pursuant to Section 41-61-55 to investigate and certify deaths that affect the public interest.

(j) “ Autopsy ” means a postmortem examination.

(k) “ Postmortem examination ” means an examination of a dead human body that may include the least invasive to most invasive methods based on the expertise and judgment of the pathologist handling the case.