{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-63-63-949","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 63, § 63-949","heading":"Records - Evidence - Sudden Unexpected Death in Infants","body":"and Children.\n\nA. 1. a. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall keep\n\nfull and complete records, properly indexed, giving\n\nthe name, if known, of every person whose death is\n\ninvestigated, the place where the body was found, the\n\ndate, cause, and manner of death and all other\n\nrelevant information concerning the death. The full\n\nreport and detailed findings of the autopsy, if any,\n\nshall be a part of the record in each case.\n\nb. The Chief Medical Examiner shall track and forward,\n\nwithin seventy-two (72) hours after the examination,\n\ndemographic information on sudden, unexpected and\n\nnontraumatic infant deaths including, but not limited\n\nto, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), to the\n\nOklahoma SIDS Coordinator at the State Department of\n\nHealth and the SIDS Foundation of Oklahoma. As used\n\nin this subparagraph, \"Sudden Unexpected Death in\n\nInfants and Children\" (SUDIC) means the sudden,\n\nunexpected death of an apparently healthy infant less\n\nthan one (1) year of age which remains unexplained\n\nfollowing a complete medicolegal analysis and death\n\nscene investigation. The Chief Medical Examiner shall\n\nfollow up with further notification upon final\n\ndetermination of a cause of death. Such notification\n\nshall be for statistical reporting purposes only.\n\n2. The office shall promptly deliver to each district attorney\n\nhaving jurisdiction of the case, copies of all cases relating to a\n\ndeath for which further investigation may be advisable. Any\n\ndistrict attorney or other law enforcement official may, upon\n\nrequest, obtain copies of such records or other information deemed\n\nnecessary to the performance of such district attorney's or other\n\nlaw enforcement official's official duties.\n\nB. No report, findings, testimony, or other information of a\n\nmedical examiner shall be admitted in evidence in any civil action\n\nin any court in this state, except under the following\n\ncircumstances:\n\n1. Certified copies of reports pertaining to the factual\n\ndeterminations of views and examination of or autopsies upon the\n\nbodies of deceased persons by the Chief Medical Examiner or anyone\n\nunder his or her supervision or control may be admitted in evidence\n\nin any civil case in a court of competent jurisdiction in this state\n\nby stipulation of all parties in the case;\n\n2. If a party refuses to stipulate to admission, the reports\n\nmay be requested by any party seeking to admit the records as\n\nevidence. The request shall be made to the Office of the Chief\n\nMedical Examiner, who shall furnish same;\n\n3. The party seeking admission of the reports shall then serve\n\ninterrogatories concerning the facts to be answered under oath by\n\nthe person preparing the records. The interrogatories and answers\n\nthereto shall be subject to the rules of evidence and may be\n\nadmissible in evidence in any civil case in a court of competent\n\njurisdiction. Objections to the interrogatories shall be made by\n\nany party in accordance with law just as if the interrogatories had\n\nbeen served on the objecting party. Cross interrogatories shall be\n\nsubmitted and shall be answered and admitted in evidence in the same\n\nmanner as interrogatories;\n\n4. The taking of depositions shall then be allowed pursuant to\n\nthe provisions of Section 3230 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes;\n\nprovided, however, depositions shall take place at the Office of the\n\nChief Medical Examiner or anyone under his or her supervision or\n\ncontrol whose testimony is sought, unless all parties, including the\n\nmedical examiner, agree the deposition can be taken elsewhere;\n\n5. No other testimony of the Chief Medical Examiner or anyone\n\nunder his or her supervision and control shall be admitted in\n\nevidence in any civil action in any court of this state, unless\n\ntimely application is made to the court by an interested party or\nision or\n\ncontrol whose testimony is sought, unless all parties, including the\n\nmedical examiner, agree the deposition can be taken elsewhere;\n\n5. No other testimony of the Chief Medical Examiner or anyone\n\nunder his or her supervision and control shall be admitted in\n\nevidence in any civil action in any court of this state, unless\n\ntimely application is made to the court by an interested party or\n\nlitigant and timely notice of the application is given to the\n\nmedical examiner. After a hearing, the court, for good cause shown,\n\nmay order the appearance of the Chief Medical Examiner or anyone\n\nunder his or her supervision and control for the purpose of\n\ntestifying and may order that a subpoena be issued for that\n\nappearance; provided, however, that such order by the court shall be\n\nthe exception and not the rule; and\n\n6. The cost of the records or certified copies thereof shall be\n\npaid by the party requesting same. The reasonable fee charged by\n\nthe Chief Medical Examiner or anyone under his or her supervision\n\nand control for answering interrogatories or cross interrogatories,\n\nsubmitting to depositions, or providing testimony shall be paid by\n\nthe party submitting same. This fee shall be in place of any other\n\nwitness fee allowed by law.\n\nC. Certified copies of reports and findings, exclusive of\n\nhearsay evidence, may be admitted in evidence in preliminary\n\nhearings and criminal trials by stipulation.\n\nD. Certified copies of reports of investigations by a medical\n\nexaminer, laboratory reports and/or autopsy reports may be furnished\n\nto the next of kin or others having need for them upon written\n\nstatement and payment of a reasonable fee set by the Board of\n\nMedicolegal Investigations.","path":["OK Code","Title 63"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os63.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"aad44ee8dda928860b23ca97027d2fb07b8b666c3031104e29a623a498e4ab70","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-63-63-948.1","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-63-63-95"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}