Are Autopsy Reports Public in Arizona? (2026 Guide)

Arizona autopsy reports are public records under Arizona's public records law, and anyone can request a copy of a finalized report. There is no blanket open-investigation exemption that locks a finished written report until a criminal case ends. The main limit is completion: an unfinished report shows a "Pending" cause and manner of death until the examination and toxicology are done. Autopsy photographs, digital images, x-rays, and video recordings are a separate category that the medical examiner may not release to the general public without a superior court order. Legal next of kin can usually obtain a copy of the written report at no charge, while others may pay a small fee for paper copies.

Are Autopsy Reports Public in Arizona?

Yes. In Arizona an autopsy or medical examiner report is a public record. Once the office finalizes the report, any member of the public can request a copy through the county office that holds it.

The key restriction is completion, not case status. Until the examination and toxicology are finished, the cause and manner of death show as "Pending," and there is no final report to release. Once those findings are complete, the report exists as a public record.

Arizona's public records law, Ariz. Rev. Stat. 39-121, provides that public records in the custody of any officer are open to inspection by any person during office hours, and a finished medical examiner report falls within that access. The statute that governs autopsies, Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-597, requires a full record of the autopsy to be filed in the county medical examiner office. There is no blanket exemption that seals a completed report just because a related criminal investigation or prosecution is still ongoing. If an office wants to withhold a finished report, it must point to a specific harm that disclosure of that particular report would cause, not rely on a general open-case rule.

Photographs, Images, and Video Are a Separate Category

The open-records default above applies to the written report. It does not apply to autopsy imagery. Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-597.02 sets an opposite, categorical rule: photographs, digital images, x-rays, and video recordings of human remains created by a medical examiner or alternate medical examiner during a death investigation may not be disclosed unless a superior court judge grants disclosure after reviewing the materials in camera. A person seeking those materials can petition the superior court in the county where the death investigation occurred, and the judge weighs the state's public records interests in deciding whether to order release.

The statute also lists people who may examine and obtain the imagery without a court order. That list includes the county attorney, attorney general, or other law enforcement agency with jurisdiction; the decedent's surviving spouse, child, parent, legal guardian, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling, or their legal representative or designated agent; a personal representative of the estate or a person the decedent designated before death; federal, state, or local government authorities acting in their official duties; the attending physician or nurse practitioner; a medical or scientific body or educational institution for education or research, provided the materials do not reveal the decedent's identity; and a defense attorney in a criminal or postconviction proceeding. The office may set procedures and reproduction fees for those requests.

You can learn more about how these records are treated nationwide on our overview, Are Autopsies Public Records?.

Who Performs Autopsies in Arizona?

Arizona uses a county-based medical examiner system, and the state has no single statewide medical examiner and no coroners. Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-592 a county board of supervisors may appoint a forensic pathologist to the position of medical examiner. If the board determines that appointing one is not practicable, it must instead designate one or more alternate medical examiners, who need not be residents of the county. That is why larger counties such as Maricopa and Pima run dedicated forensic offices while smaller counties rely on contracted or out-of-county coverage.

The medical examiner is responsible for investigating certain deaths. By statute these include deaths from violence, deaths that occur suddenly when a person was in apparent good health, deaths when the person was not under the current care of a health care provider, and deaths that occur in a suspicious, unusual, or unnatural manner.

The office also investigates deaths in custody, deaths tied to a person's occupation, deaths that may pose a public health hazard, and deaths during surgical or anesthetic procedures. The medical examiner decides whether a full autopsy is needed. Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-594 the office authorizes forensic pathologists to perform examinations and autopsies, and it may also authorize medical students or pathology residents and fellows to perform an autopsy under the supervision of a licensed physician who is board certified in forensic pathology. Pathologist assistants may assist under direct supervision, but they may not certify a cause of death or independently perform an autopsy. In a county working through alternate medical examiners, Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-592 still requires that all autopsies be performed by a forensic pathologist.

An autopsy is not ordered for every death. Most deaths from known natural disease under a doctor's care never reach the medical examiner at all and are certified by the attending physician instead.

Who Can Request an Arizona Autopsy Report?

Both legal next of kin and the general public can request a completed written report. Arizona does not limit finished medical examiner reports to family members the way some states do, because the report is a public record.

Legal next of kin often receive the most streamlined access and, in counties like Maricopa, the lowest cost. Next of kin are also on the short list of people who can obtain autopsy photographs and video under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-597.02 without going to court, which the general public cannot. The county attorney also has a specific statutory right under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 11-597 to request and receive a copy of any autopsy report.

If the report is not yet finished, the office cannot provide a final report to anyone, because the cause and manner of death are still pending. That limit comes from the report not yet existing in final form, not from any rule that the public is shut out while a case is open.

How to Get an Autopsy or Toxicology Report in Arizona

Requests go to the medical examiner office in the county where the death was investigated, not to a central state agency. You typically submit a public records request form, identify the decedent and date of death, and provide your contact information.

In Maricopa County you can contact the Office of the Medical Examiner at 602-506-3322 and complete a public records request form. There is no charge for legal next of kin or for electronic copies requested by others; the county also runs an online case-status portal where you can check whether a report has been finalized.

Fees and forms vary by county, so confirm the exact process and any paper-copy charge with the specific office before you submit. Toxicology results are usually folded into the final report, which is one reason complex cases take longer to finalize.

Processing time depends on the case. Maricopa County aims to finalize about 90% of reports within 90 days, but cases that require extended laboratory testing can run beyond that. Until a report is finalized, the cause and manner of death show as "Pending" and there is no final report to release. That delay is about completing the examination, not about a criminal case staying open.

For other Arizona death documents, start at Arizona Death Records.

Autopsy Report vs Death Certificate in Arizona

An autopsy report and a death certificate are two different documents. The death certificate is a vital record issued by the Arizona Department of Health Services and county vital records offices, and it lists a single cause-of-death line plus the manner of death.

The autopsy report is a detailed forensic document prepared by the medical examiner. It summarizes the circumstances of death, relevant medical and social history, and the examination findings, including injuries and toxicology.

Access rules differ too. Arizona death certificates are restricted records available mainly to family and others with a documented interest, while a finalized autopsy report is generally open to the public as a public record. People often request the autopsy report when they need the full detail behind the brief cause-of-death line on the certificate.

Arizona Autopsy Report Facts

Disclaimer: This page provides general information and is not legal advice. Public records procedures, fees, and timelines vary by county and can change. Confirm the current process with the county medical examiner office before relying on it.

Sources

This guide relies on the Arizona Revised Statutes and official county medical examiner resources; see the citations below.