SB427 Summary: Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Investigation Act

• Establishes the Alabama Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Investigation (SUIDI) Team within the Department of Public Health as a subcommittee of the State Child Death Review Team to develop investigation protocols, training standards, and standardized reporting forms.

• Requires all law enforcement agencies and coroners to obtain SUIDI Team-approved training on investigation protocols for infant death cases, with the Department of Public Health responsible for developing trainer teams and disseminating materials.

• Mandates that in every sudden unexplained infant death (SUID) case, the county coroner or medical examiner must notify law enforcement, obtain legal authorization for forensic pathologist examination, and initiate investigation within 24 hours of contact.

• Defines SUID as the sudden death of an infant less than one year of age outside direct physician care whose cause of death cannot be determined after thorough investigation and examination.

• Becomes effective on the first day of the sixth month following passage and gubernatorial approval.