RCW 43.43.770Unidentified deceased persons.It shall be the duty of the sheriff or director of public safety of every county, or the chief of police of every city or town, or the chief officer of other law enforcement agencies operating within this state, coroners or medical examiners, to record whenever possible the fingerprints and such other identification data as may be useful to establish identity, of all unidentified dead bodies found within their respective jurisdictions, and to furnish to the section all data so obtained. The section shall search its files and otherwise make a reasonable effort to determine the identity of the deceased and notify the contributing agency of the finding.In all cases where there is found to exist a criminal record for the deceased, the section shall notify the federal bureau of investigation and each criminal justice agency, within or outside the state in whose jurisdiction the decedent has been arrested, of the date and place of death of decedent.[ 1972 ex.s. c 152 s 15.]
Washington Legal Code