Chief medical examiner -- Appointment -- Qualifications -- Authority

(1) The executive director shall appoint a chief medical examiner who shall be licensed to practice medicine in the state and shall meet the qualifications of a forensic pathologist, certified by the American Board of Pathology. (2) (a) The medical examiner shall serve at the will of the executive director. (b) The medical examiner has authority to: (i) employ medical, technical and clerical personnel as may be required to effectively administer this chapter, subject to the rules of the department and the state merit system; (ii) conduct investigations and pathological examinations; (iii) perform autopsies authorized in this title; (iv) conduct or authorize necessary examinations on dead bodies; and (v) notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection 26B-8-321(3), retain tissues and biological samples: (A) for scientific purposes; (B) where necessary to accurately certify the cause and manner of death; or (C) for tissue from an unclaimed body, subject to Section 26B-8-225, in order to donate the tissue or biological sample to an individual who is affiliated with an established search and rescue dog organization, for the purpose of training a dog to search for human remains. (c) In the case of an unidentified body, the medical examiner shall authorize or conduct investigations, tests and processes in order to determine its identity as well as the cause of death. (3) The medical examiner may appoint regional pathologists, each of whom shall be approved by the executive director.