Nashville, TN asked in Civil Rights, Constitutional Law and Gov & Administrative Law for Michigan

Q: Since morgue employees won't inform me where the body was taken initially, how do I find out?

The morgue claims to have taken the body from the hospital, however their records state the body was at the morgue the following day.

2 Lawyer Answers

A: Do you have an exact timeline? It would not be uncommon for the transfer to have occurred in the overnight hours, or for the hospital to have kept the body until the next day. I'm unsure where else the body would have been transferred to between the hospital and morgue except maybe an off-site medical examiner's office, but in most places, the ME operates out of the morgue.

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Answered

A: It can be frustrating when you are not getting clear answers about something so important. If the morgue is not providing you with the information you need, consider asking the hospital directly for a detailed record of where the body was initially sent. Hospitals often have logs of where deceased individuals are transferred, and this might help clarify the timeline.

You could also check if there are any legal documents or death certificates that note the location of the body after it left the hospital. Sometimes these documents provide more details that can fill in gaps.

If you're still having trouble, contacting a funeral home or legal representative might help to apply additional pressure on the institutions involved to release the necessary information. Sometimes, external parties can expedite the process when institutions are reluctant to share details.

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