Whenever any inmate dies suddenly or under unusual circumstances in any correctional institution, the warden or superintendent of that institution shall immediately notify the commissioner and shall also notify the coroner of the county in which the death occurs. The warden or superintendent is also directed to furnish the department with a copy of the findings of the coroner's inquest, together with any other information available that would be of use to the commissioner in determining the cause of death.
(Ga. L. 1956, p. 161, § 25.)
Cross references.- Reimbursement of counties for expenses of burial of inmates, § 36-12-5.
Requirement of autopsy and inquest upon death of inmate occurring when physician not present or as a result of violence, § 45-16-27.
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
Notification of next of kin of inmates' death.
- Neither the warden nor any staff member at the Georgia State Prison is legally required to notify the next of kin of the death of an inmate who has been transferred to a hospital. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-445.
RESEARCH REFERENCES
ALR.
- Liability for death or injury to prisoner, 61 A.L.R. 569.
Liability of prison authorities for injury to prisoner directly caused by assault by other prisoner, 41 A.L.R.3d 1021.