WY: Wyoming lawmaker proposes to seal some autopsy information

CHEYENNE - A Jackson lawmaker wants to alter state law to stipulate that toxicology reports and about other data from autopsies should remain confidential unless a judge orders it released.

Rep. Keith Gingery, R-Jackson, is president of the House Judiciary Committee. He said Tuesday his card would give counsel to county coroners, some of whom he said currently don't turn any autopsy information while others will release everything they've got.

Gingery's bill would require coroners to publish a story called a verdict listing the person's cause of death. Anyone other than close relatives interested in more information would have to get permission from a judge.

"There's a lot of confusion out there right now, and I believe this might actually opened up a lot of stuff," Gingery said. "Because right now, a lot of those coroners don't reach out anything."

Jim Angell, executive director of the Wyoming Press Association, said Tuesday it appears Gingery's bill would generally codify the existing practices of most coroners in the state. Angell said he hasn't studied the bill closely yet.

Angell said Wyoming media have departed to woo to draw the loss of autopsy information in some cases. But he said generally that reporters are simply concerned in a brief description of the cause of death.

Angell said toxicology reports and sound and video recordings from autopsies aren't specifically listed in current state law as being public documents. Yet he said he has a bit of a problem with assuming that something should be a secret document, "right off the bat."

"I'm not mad about it being put into law, but it's essentially what we get stuck doing a lot of times now," Angell said of the process of leaving to homage to get autopsy documents.

Gingery said he could foresee situations where a news organization would cause a logical motive to see the photos, for instance to hold an expert review a coroner's determination of a person's cause of death.

"There are reasons why media or a member of the world would take photos," Gingery said. "All I'm trying to say is 'let's not return it to someone unless they make a cause to take it.' Not just to put it on the Internet to catch people."

Gingery said he sponsored similar legislation that failed to spend in 2005. He said he agreed to try again after a woman approached him to show concern that a paper had published information about her daughter following her suicide.

"It was stressful to determine a way to publish information, but perhaps not release everything unless you take a very good reason," Gingery said.

The Wyoming Legislature will consider Gingery's bill and other legislation when it convenes next month.