Are Autopsy Reports Public in Kentucky? (2026 Guide)

In Kentucky, autopsy reports are handled as public records under the state's Open Records Act, but access is not always immediate, and the Act runs to residents of the Commonwealth rather than to the general public. Under KRS 17.150(2), the written autopsy and toxicology report held by a coroner or the medical examiner is subject to inspection once the related prosecution is completed or a decision not to prosecute has been made. While a case remains open, the office can withhold the report only by justifying the refusal with specificity, and autopsy photographs, video, and audio recordings stay closed unless the spouse or personal representative waives that separate protection.

Are Autopsy Reports Public in Kentucky?

Autopsy reports in Kentucky are treated as public records under the state's Open Records Act, though access can be delayed and the right to inspect is not open to everyone. KRS 61.872(1) provides that all public records "shall be open for inspection by any resident of the Commonwealth," and the custodian may require an applicant to state in the written application how they qualify as a resident under KRS 61.870(10)(a) to (f).

While a case remains open, coroners and the medical examiner's office may seek to withhold the detailed findings, narrative, and toxicology results as investigative records, but they have to justify that refusal with specificity rather than point to the open investigation alone. Once prosecution is completed or prosecutors have decided not to pursue charges, KRS 17.150(2) makes the investigative report subject to inspection, with narrow carve-outs for informant identities, certain personal information, officer safety, and material to be used in a prospective law enforcement action.

Kentucky law does not separately publish the coroner's cause and manner finding to the general public ahead of that. The finding is recorded on the death certificate, and death certificates are vital records that carry their own restricted-access rules under KRS 213.131, not open records.

Kentucky law also protects autopsy photographs, other visual images, and video or audio recordings. Under KRS 72.031, those materials are not open to the public unless the decedent's spouse or personal representative provides an express written waiver.

This setup is common in states that try to balance the public interest in cause-of-death information against the privacy of grieving families. Kentucky's death investigation rules sit in Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) Chapter 72, but the rule that decides whether the written report itself is open sits outside that chapter, in the Open Records Act at KRS 61.870 to 61.884 and in KRS 17.150.

Who Performs Autopsies in Kentucky?

Kentucky uses a county-based coroner system, supported by a statewide medical examiner program. Each county has an elected coroner who investigates deaths, and the State Medical Examiner's Office, housed in the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, assists and complements the coroners by performing autopsies.

An autopsy is not performed for every death. It is ordered when a death falls into a category that requires investigation under KRS 72.025.

Those categories include homicide, suicide, deaths involving drugs or poison, motor vehicle crashes, deaths in institutions, fires, suspected child abuse, drowning, sudden infant death syndrome, sudden or unexplained deaths of apparently healthy people under 40, and workplace accidents with no obvious cause.

When a coroner determines that one of these situations applies, the coroner can order an autopsy, which is then performed by a forensic pathologist. The result is the official autopsy report, separate from the death certificate.

Who Can Request a Kentucky Autopsy Report?

Kentucky's Open Records Act does not create a family tier for the written autopsy report. The right to inspect belongs to a resident of the Commonwealth, and KRS 61.870(10) defines that term broadly: people who live, work, or own real property in Kentucky, businesses located here or registered with the Secretary of State, news-gathering organizations, and anyone authorized to act on behalf of one of those. An out-of-state relative has no independent right of inspection under the Act, though a Kentucky attorney or another authorized agent can request on their behalf.

Because there is no family exception, the written report is either open to a resident requester or exempt from disclosure. Kentucky has no middle tier that releases the written report to next of kin or a treating physician while keeping it closed to everyone else.

While an investigation is open, an office that wants to withhold the report has to justify the refusal. KRS 17.150(3) places that burden on the custodian, requires the refusal to be justified with specificity, and says the exemptions cannot be used to delay or impede the right of inspection.

The Kentucky Supreme Court reinforced that in Shively Police Department v. Courier Journal, Inc., 2023-SC-0033-DG, decided September 26, 2024. The Court held that the department failed to meet its burden under the law enforcement exemption in KRS 61.878(1)(h) because it did not adequately prove that release would pose a concrete risk of harm to the agency in the prospective action, and that the department had relied on KRS 17.150(2) prematurely, because that statute governs only the mandatory disclosure of intelligence and investigative reports after the related prosecution has been completed or a determination not to prosecute has been made. A pending case, standing alone, is not a sufficient reason for denial.

Autopsy photographs, other visual images, and video or audio recordings follow a separate rule, and they do have an enumerated recipient list. Under KRS 72.031(1), those materials are not open to the public without an express waiver from the spouse or personal representative, but the medical examiner or coroner must still make them available to:

• The spouse, children, surviving parents, and personal representative of the decedent
• A law enforcement agency, a fatality review panel required by statute, a county attorney, a Commonwealth's attorney, a public health officer, or a coroner with a bona fide interest in the case
• A beneficiary under an insurance policy processing a claim, or an insurer with written permission from the spouse or personal representative
• An attorney or an attorney's agents in a matter arising out of the death, and a criminal defendant proceeding pro se in a case arising out of the death
• Licensed medical professionals for teaching or scientific publication, certified law enforcement instructors for bona fide training, and licensed attorneys for a Kentucky continuing legal education program

That list applies to images and recordings only, and several of those categories require the decedent's identifying details to be redacted first. It is not a list of who may obtain the written report. A Circuit Court can also authorize access to autopsy images or recordings on a showing of good cause under KRS 72.031(8).

If a request is denied while a case is open, the office that holds the record should cite the specific exemption it is relying on and explain the harm that release would cause. When in doubt, ask the medical examiner's office or the coroner what portions are releasable and when.

How to Get an Autopsy or Toxicology Report in Kentucky

To get a Kentucky autopsy or toxicology report, you submit a written request to the office that holds the record. For state-performed autopsies, that is the Kentucky State Medical Examiner's Office.

Send written requests to the Central Laboratory Facility, Kentucky State Medical Examiner's Office, 100 Sower Blvd., Suite 202, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601-8272. Requests are reviewed by the Office of General Counsel at the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet before any records are released.

Fees and Processing

A fee applies for copies of autopsy materials under KRS 72.260, which authorizes the secretary of justice and public safety to set a schedule of fees for duplicate records of investigations, examinations, and autopsies. Because the office reviews each request, processing is not instant, so allow time for the legal review.

Pending-Investigation Hold

If the death investigation is still open, the office may withhold the report, but only by pointing to a specific exemption and explaining the harm that release would cause. KRS 61.878(1)(h) covers records compiled in the process of detecting and investigating violations where disclosure could pose an articulable risk of harm to the agency or its investigation, and the same provision says that exemption cannot be used to delay or impede the rights granted by the Open Records Act.

Open-case denials are still common in homicide and overdose cases. If you receive one, ask the office to identify the exemption it is relying on and the specific harm it expects from release, because a general reference to an ongoing investigation does not meet the standard.

Some autopsies are coroner-ordered at the county level, so the county coroner's office may also hold a copy. If you are unsure which office to contact, start with the county coroner where the death occurred.

Autopsy Report vs Death Certificate in Kentucky

An autopsy report and a death certificate are two different documents in Kentucky. They are created by different offices, serve different purposes, and run on different access tracks.

The death certificate is the official vital record. It is issued through the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics and includes a single cause-of-death line, the date, and basic demographic facts. Families use it to settle estates, claim insurance, and close accounts.

Vital records are not open records. KRS 213.131(1) makes it unlawful to permit inspection of, or to disclose information contained in, a vital record except as authorized by that chapter, by regulation, or by court order. The only routinely public death listing is the state registrar's annual list of people who died in the Commonwealth, which shows just the name of the deceased and the date and county of death, and death records themselves become public records fifty years after the death.

The autopsy report is the forensic pathologist's detailed findings. It explains the examination, the injuries or disease found, and often includes toxicology results that support the cause and manner of death printed on the certificate.

In short, the death certificate gives you the conclusion in one line, while the autopsy report gives you the underlying medical evidence. The certificate is obtained through the vital records rules in KRS Chapter 213; the report is obtained through the Open Records Act.

Kentucky Autopsy Report Facts

Disclaimer: This page is general information, not legal advice. Record access rules and fees can change, and some autopsies are handled at the county coroner level. Confirm current procedures with the Kentucky State Medical Examiner's Office or the county coroner before relying on this information.

To learn how autopsy access compares nationwide, see Are Autopsies Public Records?. For death certificates and other records in this state, go up to Kentucky Death Records, or browse the full hub at Death Records by State.

Sources

This page draws on Kentucky Revised Statutes Chapter 72, the Kentucky Open Records Act at KRS 61.870 to 61.884, KRS 17.150, KRS 213.131, the Kentucky Supreme Court's September 2024 decision in Shively Police Department v. Courier Journal, Inc., the CDC Public Health Law Program's Kentucky coroner and medical examiner law summary, and the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet's Office of the Medical Examiner.