Session of 1998
HOUSE BILL No. 3015
By Committee on Federal and State Affairs
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AN ACT concerning district coroners; relating
to special deputy coroners;
10 amending K.S.A.
22a-226 and repealing the existing section.
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12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
13 Section 1. K.S.A.
22a-226 is hereby amended to read as follows: 22a-
14 226. (a) There is hereby established the
office of district coroner in each
15 judicial district of the state. The
district coroner shall be a resident of the
16 state of Kansas licensed to practice
medicine and surgery by the state
17 board of healing arts or shall be a
resident of a military or other federal
18 enclave within the state and shall be duly
licensed to practice medicine
19 and surgery within such enclave.
20 (b) The local medical
society or societies in each judicial district shall
21 nominate one or more candidates for the
office of district coroner and
22 submit the names of the persons so
nominated to the county commis-
23 sioners of a single-county judicial
district or the county commissioners of
24 the county with the largest population in
multiple-county judicial districts
25 on or before January 1, 1995, and every
four years thereafter. The county
26 commissioners of a single-county judicial
district or the county commis-
27 sioners of the county with the largest
population in multiple-county ju-
28 dicial districts shall appoint a district
coroner for the district. The ap-
29 pointee may be one of the persons nominated
or some other qualified
30 person.
31 (c) The district coroner
shall serve for a term of four years, which
32 term shall begin on the second Monday in
January of the year in which
33 such coroner is appointed, and such
coroner's compensation shall be as
34 provided by law. Vacancies in the office of
district coroner shall be filled
35 in the same manner as appointments for
regular terms of district coroner.
36 Such an appointment shall be for the
remainder of the regular term and
37 shall be effective from the date the
coroner is appointed and is otherwise
38 qualified for the office.
39 (d) The coroner shall,
before entering upon the duties of the office,
40 take and subscribe an oath or affirmation
that such coroner will faithfully,
41 impartially and to the best of the
coroner's skill and ability discharge the
42 duties of district coroner.
43 (e) The district
coroner, with the approval of the county commission-
HB 3015
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1 ers of a single-county judicial
district or the county commissioners of the
2 county with the largest population in
multiple-county judicial districts,
3 may appoint one or more deputy
coroners, who shall have the qualifica-
4 tions of and shall have the same
duties and authority as the district cor-
5 oner, except that, whenever a
district coroner is unable to appoint a qual-
6 ified deputy in each county of a
multi-county judicial district, a special
7 deputy coroner who does not
possess the requisite qualifications is a li-
8 censed embalmer pursuant to K.S.A.
65-1701, and amendments thereto
9 or a licensed funeral director
pursuant to K.S.A. 65-1714 and amendments
10 thereto, may be appointed
for a term not to exceed one year or in
that
11 county until a qualified deputy is
appointed, whichever occurs first. The
12 district coroner shall have supervisory
authority over all deputy coroners
13 and special deputy coroners.
Special deputy coroners serve at the pleasure
14 of the district coroner. Deputy
coroners and special deputy coroners,
15 before entering upon the discharge of their
duties shall take and subscribe
16 an oath or affirmation to faithfully
discharge the duties of their office to
17 the same extent and with like effect as the
district coroner.
18 (f) Nothing in this
section shall prohibit a district coroner from being
19 appointed as district coroner in more than
one judicial district.
20 Sec. 2. K.S.A.
22a-226 is hereby repealed.
21 Sec. 3. This act
shall take effect and be in force from and after its
22 publication in the statute book.
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