New Hampshire law enforcement may train dogs with remains under specific consent rules

New Hampshire law enforcement agencies may possess parts of human remains solely to train dogs to find human remains. This applies to New Hampshire law enforcement agencies training dogs to detect human remains. Written consent must come from the deceased person’s next of kin or legal representative, or from a legally valid document the deceased made before death expressing an intent to donate for scientific or law enforcement training. The consent must expressly allow training and identify the specific parts to be used. This permission took effect on September 8, 2026.

New Hampshire colleges and universities may help prepare human remains for law enforcement training. This applies to colleges and universities in New Hampshire preparing training materials from human remains for law enforcement. Written consent must come from the deceased person’s next of kin or legal representative, or from a legally valid document the deceased made before death to donate for scientific or law enforcement training. It must name the specific parts and allow training. A qualified medical or forensic expert must oversee preparation at a licensed funeral home or mortuary, with the funeral director’s consent. The college or university must have a written agreement with the requesting agency and follow health and safety rules. These rules took effect on September 8, 2026.

Agencies must return the parts of human remains left when training ends. This applies to parts of human remains left after training. The remains must go to a New Hampshire college or university that helped prepare the training materials, or to a licensed New Hampshire company authorized by the state to handle medical waste. The involved funeral home or mortuary must ensure lawful final disposal. The return is required when training ends; the chapter took effect on September 8, 2026.

New Hampshire law enforcement agencies using human remains for training must write a policy and file it with the state police training council. This applies to New Hampshire law enforcement agencies that possess or use human remains for dog training or related law enforcement training. The policy must cover how agencies obtain remains, document consent, store and track remains, and return or dispose of them. For dog training, the agency and involved funeral home or mortuary must keep written consent and make it available for inspection on request by that agency or other regulatory authorities. These duties took effect on September 8, 2026.