Oh boy, this thread has me googling all kinds of things I’ve never been curious about before.
Autopsies in Tennessee are at the discretion of the Coroner. If there wasn't anything suspicious about her death (or, possibly, if the family doesn't request it), there probably won't be an autopsy.
On the other hand, the obituary doesn't mention any burial information.
Yes and no. There are some cases where it’s left to the discretion of the Medical Examiner, but Tennessee law specifies a lengthy list of circumstances where an investigation must be done, including:
Deaths occurring suddenly in a person in apparent good health; Deaths in which the body is to be cremated; Deaths of adults lacking a medical diagnosis which could reasonably result in death;
Deaths due or related to any of the above or any other non-natural event, regardless of the time elapsed between the injury and death. If death is related in any way to a single identifiable injury or poisoning event, the period of time between the non-natural event and the death is irrelevant. Examples of delayed deaths include:
* An elderly person who dies months after becoming bedridden from a fall
* A person who dies of bladder infection due to paralysis following a car crash years before
* A person who develops pneumonia as the result of lack of oxygen to the brain after choking on food.
I imagine her prior brain injury and death would mean her death would fall into the latter category of delayed death if nothing else.
https://www.tn.gov/health/health-program-areas/oscme/resources.html#copyautopsyreport
I assumed, perhaps wrongly, that indicated cremation and no burial would take place.
I think you’re probably right. I went back to her obit and the home page noted there is a crematorium onsite but no mention of a cemetery.
Could also be a mausoleum. We have a lot of those here. I assumed there was no autopsy since services were scheduled so soon. If she had a chronic illness and/or the cause of death was obvious, I don’t think they would do one.
I don’t think the timeline indicates anything one way or the other. There’s been plenty of time for an autopsy to be performed.
“Generally, the Medical Examiner will try to conduct the examination within 24 to 48 hours after the deceased has been brought to the ME’s office. In most cases the deceased can be released to the funeral home once the medical examination has been completed.”
https://www.us-funerals.com/funeral-articles/medical-examiner-funerals.html