When a death is investigated by the Dallas County Medical Examiner, the family loses the one thing they most need in the first day: a clear sense of what is happening and who is deciding it. This page is written to give that back. Every operational fact here is the county's own, quoted from the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Sciences family FAQ, and the parts that are ours are marked as ours.
If you want the wider sequence rather than this one step, start with what to do when someone dies in Texas. If the worry right now is money, read help with funeral costs in Dallas County — and know that the Medical Examiner's involvement does not add anything to what a funeral costs.
Why did the Medical Examiner take the case?
Not because anyone suspects the family of anything. The office investigates deaths that are, in the county's words, "sudden, unexpected, or have legal or public health implications." A hospital, a physician, a police officer or a justice of the peace reports the death; the office then decides whether it falls in its jurisdiction. These are the categories the county lists:
| Reportable circumstance | What it usually looks like in practice |
|---|---|
| Death within 24 hours of hospital admission | A collapse at home, an ambulance, and a death in the emergency department the same day |
| Unnatural death, or a killing | A fall, a crash, an overdose, a drowning, a homicide |
| Unidentified body or body parts | Identification has to be established before anything else can move |
| Suspicious circumstances | Anything the reporting authority cannot rule out at the scene |
| Suicide | Investigated in every case, without exception |
| No physician in attendance | A death at home with no doctor who had been treating the person |
| A child under six years old | Investigated regardless of how clear the cause appears |
| A physician cannot certify the cause | The treating doctor declines to sign the death certificate |
Most families reading this are in the first or the sixth row. Neither carries any implication about the family or about the person who died.
Who chooses the funeral home?
You do — and this is the single most common thing families are told wrong. The county's FAQ states it plainly: "The Medical Examiner's office is not permitted to recommend a funeral home." Nobody at the office will name one, nobody is assigned to you, and no funeral home has any standing arrangement that gets it the case. If a firm tells you it has been "assigned" by the Medical Examiner, that is not how it works.
You do not have to decide in the first hour. You do have to decide before anything moves, because the release is made to a named funeral home.
Who signs the release?
The legal next of kin signs a funeral release form authorising the funeral home you chose to take your loved one into its care, along with the personal property. Texas sets the order of who that is:
| Order | Who can sign |
|---|---|
| 1 | Surviving spouse |
| 2 | Adult children |
| 3 | Parents |
| 4 | Siblings |
If the person at the top of that list is unreachable, out of the country, or estranged, say so early rather than late — it is a solvable problem, but only if it is known before the paperwork is drawn.
How long does the release actually take?
Dallas County states that the deceased is typically released to the funeral home of the family's choice within 24 to 48 hours after identification and examination are complete. Where an autopsy is performed, the county says it is generally completed the day after arrival, and that a heavy workload can add one to two days.
Two things families should hold onto. First, that clock starts when the examination is complete, not when the death occurred — so a delay in identification is a delay in everything. Second, the county asks families to make arrangements within three days of being notified, and if you need longer, you call Investigations at (214) 920-5900, option 1, and say so. It is a phone call, not a lost right.
You can check the release status yourself at the county's portal, dallascounty.org/mepi, rather than waiting on a call back.
Can we see him at the Medical Examiner's office?
No. The office has no viewing facilities and does not offer viewing under any circumstances. Families sometimes drive across the county to be turned away at the door on the worst day of their lives; we would rather you read it here first.
Viewing happens after the funeral home receives your loved one. Whether it is possible, and what it will look like, depends on the circumstances of the death — and that is a conversation to have with a licensed funeral director who has actually seen the case, not a promise anyone should make over the phone.
What happens to clothing, jewellery and personal property?
The county's position is that clothing and effects are generally released with the deceased to the funeral home, unless they are being held as evidence in a criminal proceeding. The office does not remove jewellery or belongings from a person.
That means the property arrives with us, and we return it to the family — inventoried, and at a moment you choose rather than in a hallway. If you are looking for a specific item, tell us before the transfer rather than after.
How do we get the autopsy report?
Autopsy reports typically take 8 to 12 weeks to finalise, because toxicology and other testing has to come back before the report can be signed. Copies are $5 for a non-certified copy and $15 for a notarised copy, payable by cash, check or money order.
The report is not needed to hold a service, to cremate, or to bury. It matters for insurance claims and for legal matters, and those follow their own timeline. Do not hold the funeral for it.
What we do while the case is open
This is our part rather than the county's, and we will say plainly what it is worth.
- We contact the Medical Examiner's office as soon as you have chosen us, so the release paperwork is prepared rather than started when the case clears.
- We tell you the same day whether identification is the hold-up or the examination is, so you are not guessing.
- We complete the death certificate work with the certifying physician or the county, and file for the cremation permit where cremation is the plan — a $30 state fee with a stated turnaround of 12 to 48 hours, which runs alongside the release rather than after it.
- We bring your loved one into refrigerated care on release, which is what buys a family time to make decisions properly.
- We do not charge for waiting. A medical examiner case does not add a fee to our prices, and any firm that adds one should be asked to show you where it sits on its price list.
Does this change what a funeral costs?
No. Our direct cremation is $1,750 complete, a memorial service is $4,995, and a traditional funeral starts at $6,350, whether or not the Medical Examiner was involved. The only county money in the picture is the state's own pass-through: $30 for the cremation permit and $21 for the first certified death certificate, $4 for each additional copy. Those are the state's fees, and we pass them through at cost. Everything is on our price list.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Medical Examiner assign a funeral home to my family?
No. Dallas County states that the Medical Examiner's office is not permitted to recommend a funeral home. The family chooses independently, and the release is made to whichever funeral home the family names.
How long will the Medical Examiner keep my loved one?
Dallas County says the deceased is typically released within 24 to 48 hours after identification and examination are complete. Where an autopsy is performed it is generally completed the day after arrival, and a heavy workload can add one to two days.
Who has to sign the release form?
The legal next of kin, in this order: surviving spouse, then adult children, then parents, then siblings. That person authorises the funeral home to take the deceased and the personal property into its care.
Can we view the body at the Medical Examiner's office?
No. The office has no viewing facilities. Viewing takes place after the funeral home has received the deceased, and whether it is possible depends on the circumstances of the death.
How do I check whether my loved one has been released?
Use the county's release status portal at dallascounty.org/mepi, or call the Medical Examiner's office at (214) 920-5900 and choose option 1 for Investigations.
What happens to the jewellery and clothing?
Clothing and effects are generally released with the deceased to the funeral home unless they are held as evidence in a criminal proceeding. The office does not remove jewellery or belongings from a person.
How much does the autopsy report cost and how long does it take?
Reports typically take 8 to 12 weeks to finalise. A non-certified copy is $5 and a notarised copy is $15, payable by cash, check or money order.
Does a medical examiner case make the funeral cost more?
Not with us. Our prices are the same either way. The only additional money is the state's own pass-through — $30 for the cremation permit and $21 for the first certified death certificate, $4 for each additional copy.
If the death happened at Parkland
Parkland is the county hospital, and its most common medical-examiner trigger is the first item on the county's list — a death within 24 hours of admission. What the hospital needs from you that day, and what the ward can and cannot tell you, is set out in a death at Parkland Hospital.
If you are waiting right now
Call (214) 550-7369. A licensed funeral director answers, and the first thing we will do is contact the Medical Examiner's office on your behalf so the release is moving while you are still deciding everything else. Esta guía también está disponible en español.