Tex. Code of Criminal Procedure § 49A.118

This is the official text of Tex. Code of Criminal Procedure § 49A.118, part of Texas’s Code of Criminal Procedure — sets the procedural rules for criminal cases in Texas.

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§ 49A.118. CREMATION.

Official statutory text

(a) A body on which an inquest is authorized by this subchapter may not be cremated unless the body is identified and:

(1) an autopsy was performed as provided by this subchapter; or

(2) an autopsy was not necessary.

(b) Before a body may be cremated, the owner or operator of the crematory shall demand, and the medical examiner of the county in which the death occurred shall provide, a certificate that is signed by the medical examiner and that shows:

(1) an autopsy was performed on the body; or

(2) an autopsy was not necessary.

(c) Before providing a certificate under Subsection (b), the medical examiner shall determine whether, from all the circumstances surrounding the death, an autopsy is necessary.

(d) The owner or operator of a crematory shall preserve a certificate provided by a medical examiner under this article for a period of two years after the cremation date for the body.

(e) An autopsy by the medical examiner is not required as a prerequisite to cremation if the person's death was caused by:

(1) Asiatic cholera;

(2) bubonic plague;

(3) typhus fever; or

(4) smallpox.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

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