Step by step
What happens after a death at home in Jackson County
Most families go through this once and have no idea what the order of events is. This page sets it out for Medford and the rest of Jackson County, from the first phone call to the day the house is yours again.
The order of events
The first call
If the death was not expected, call 911. If the person was in hospice care, follow whatever the hospice told the family to do when the time came.
Officers arrive, and sometimes the medical examiner's office
Oregon's medical examiners must look into certain deaths: those that appear to be a homicide, a suicide or an accident, those in unknown or suspicious circumstances, and those where the person was not under a physician's care just beforehand (ORS 146.090).
Nothing is touched
In those cases the law says nobody may move the body, or remove the person's effects, without permission from a medical examiner, a death investigator or the district attorney. It also forbids cleaning or changing the body. Wait in another room, or outside.
Your family member is taken into care
When the medical examiner is involved, that office arranges the removal. Otherwise the funeral home you choose comes. You do not need to have picked one in the first hour; say so if you need time.
The home is released
At some point an officer or investigator tells you they are finished. Ask them to say it plainly, and ask for the case number. Until then the room stays shut.
Cleaning, if it is needed
Many deaths leave nothing to clean. Where there is blood, or the person was not found for a while, the family or the owner arranges it. This is the point at which to phone a cleanup company.
Offices you may deal with
- The death investigation in this countyJackson County Medical Examiner
- The Oregon Health Authority's county contact list gives 5179 Crater Lake Highway, Central Point, and (541) 770-8940.
- A copy of the medical examiner's reportOregon State Police, Medical Examiner Division
- Requests go in on the state's records form with a copy of your state-issued ID. Details and the form are on the division's page; phone 971-673-8200.
- Certified death certificatesOregon Center for Health Statistics
- Staff at the funeral home named on the certificate may order copies. Family can order from the state online or by phone through VitalChek, by mail, by drop box, or in person by appointment (vital records); the order line is 888-896-4988.
- A Medford police caseMedford Police
- Non-emergency dispatch 541-776-7206; records 541-774-2250 (city contact page).
The family's choices about the room
You have more time than it feels like. A closed door and a few days change nothing legally. They do matter practically when fluids are involved, because those keep moving into the floor.
You may clean a small amount on a hard surface yourselves. You may hire a company. You may leave the room shut until relatives arrive, if no fluids are involved. What you should not do is start pulling up carpet or carrying out a mattress without protection.
If you would like someone else to carry this part, one call connects you with an independent company. If cost is the worry, read who pays first.
No rush, no pressure
A Rogue Valley cleanup business is a phone call away
Begin with the street and a sentence about the trouble. From there the business asks its own questions, lays out the work it has in mind and names a figure. Going ahead, or not, is left entirely with you.
Pick up the phone when it suits you
You will be speaking with a Rogue Valley cleanup business that has no ties to this website beyond the referral. There is no script to follow. Tell it your way.
Call (541) 210-5322Phones are picked up day and night, all week
The network carrying your call may record it. See how referrals are paid for and what is kept private.