Alabama Law passed to outlaw removing organs without notifying next of kin BALDWIN COUNTY, Alabama (WALA) — Governor Kay Ivey signed a bill outlawing medical examiners from removing an organ from a body without notifying next of kin. It was a bill Donna Atkins has been fighting for for years. Her 17 year old son, Justin Crooks, died from an aneurysm behind his heart. It wasn’t until a court hearing in a wrongful death lawsuit years later that Atkins learned something horrible. Atkins said, “My attorney told me that he tried to prepare me that they kept his heart, the forensic department, and they were going to have it in trial. Yeah, that kind of freaked me out. This is like the invasion of the body snatchers you know. How can you do this?”