(a) The term "dependent child" shall mean any unmarried child of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior member of the Civil Air Patrol whether natural, adopted, posthumously born or whether a child born out of wedlock as entitled to inherit under the Intestate Succession Act, who is under 18 years of age and dependent upon and receiving his chief support from said officer or fireman or rescue squad worker or senior member of the Civil Air Patrol at the time of his death; provided, however, that if a dependent child is entitled to receive benefits at the time of the officer's or fireman's or rescue squad worker's or senior Civil Air Patrol member's death as hereinafter provided, he shall continue to be eligible to receive such benefits regardless of his age thereafter; and further provided that any child over 18 years of age who is physically or mentally incapable of earning a living and any child over 18 years of age who was enrolled as a full-time student at the time of the officer's, the fireman's, the rescue squad worker's or the senior Civil Air Patrol member's death shall so long as he remains a full-time student as defined in the Social Security Act be regarded as a dependent child and eligible to receive benefits under the provisions of this Article.
(b) The term "dependent parent" shall mean the parent of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior member of the Civil Air Patrol, whether natural or adoptive, who was dependent upon and receiving his total and entire support from the officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior member of the Civil Air Patrol at the time of the injury which resulted in his death.
(c) The term "killed in the line of duty" shall apply to any law-enforcement officer, fireman, rescue squad worker who is killed or dies as a result of bodily injuries sustained or of extreme exercise or extreme activity experienced in the course and scope of his official duties while in the discharge of his official duty or duties. When applied to a senior member of the Civil Air Patrol as defined in this Article, "killed in the line of duty" shall mean any such senior member of the North Carolina Wing-Civil Air Patrol who is killed or dies as a result of bodily injuries sustained or of extreme exercise or extreme activity experienced in the course and scope of his official duties while engaged in a State requested and approved mission pursuant to Article 13 of Chapter 143B of the General Statutes. For purposes of this Article, when a law enforcement officer, fireman, rescue squad worker, or senior Civil Air Patrol member dies as the direct and proximate result of a myocardial infarction suffered while on duty or within 24 hours after participating in a training exercise or responding to an emergency situation, the law enforcement officer, fireman, rescue squad worker, or senior Civil Air Patrol member is presumed to have been killed in the line of duty.
(d) The term "law-enforcement officer", "officer", or "fireman" shall mean a sheriff and all law-enforcement officers employed full-time, permanent part-time, or temporarily by a sheriff, the State of North Carolina or any county or municipality thereof, whether paid or unpaid; and all full-time custodial employees and probation and parole officers of the Division of Adult Correction of the Department of Public Safety; and all full time institutional and full-time, permanent part-time, and temporary detention employees of the Division of Juvenile Justice of the Department of Public Safety and full-time, permanent part-time, and temporary detention officers employed by any sheriff, county or municipality, whether paid or unpaid. The term "firemen" shall mean both "eligible firemen" as defined in Article 86 of Chapter 58 of the General Statutes, notwithstanding any age requirements set out in that Article, and all full-time, permanent part-time and temporary employees of the North Carolina Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services during the time they are actively engaged in firefighting activities; or engaged in emergency response activities pursuant to G.S. 166A-19.77; and shall mean all full-time employees of the North Carolina Department of Insurance during the time they are actively engaged in firefighting activities, during the time they are training firefighters or rescue squad workers, and during the time they are engaged in activities as members of the State Emergency Response Team, when the Team has been activated; and shall mean all otherwise eligible persons who, while actively engaged as firefighters or rescue squad workers, are acting in the capacity of a fire or rescue instructor outside their own department or squad. The term "rescue squad worker" shall mean a person who is dedicated to the purpose of alleviating human suffering and assisting anyone who is in difficulty or who is injured or becomes suddenly ill by providing the proper and efficient care or emergency medical services. In addition, this person must belong to an organized rescue squad which is eligible for membership in the North Carolina Association of Rescue and Emergency Medical Services, Inc., and the person must have attended a minimum of 36 hours of training in the last calendar year. Each rescue squad belonging to the North Carolina Association of Rescue and Emergency Medical Services, Inc., must file a roster of those members meeting the above requirements with the State Treasurer on or about January 31 of each year, and this roster must be certified to by the secretary of said association. In addition, the term "rescue squad worker" shall mean a member of an ambulance service certified by the Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to Article 7 of Chapter 131E of the General Statutes. The Department of Health and Human Services shall furnish a list of ambulance service members to the State Treasurer on or about January 31 of each year. The term "Civil Air Patrol members" shall mean those senior members of the North Carolina Wing-Civil Air Patrol 18 years of age or older and currently certified pursuant to G.S. 143B-1031. The term "fireman" shall also mean county fire marshals when engaged in the performance of their county duties. The term "rescue squad worker" shall also mean county emergency services coordinators when engaged in the performance of their county duties.
(e) The term "spouse" shall mean the wife or husband of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member who survives him and who was residing with such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker, or senior Civil Air Patrol member at the time of and during the six months next preceding the date of injury to such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member which resulted in his death and who also resided with such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member from that date of injury up to and at the time of his death and who remains unmarried during the time benefits are forthcoming; provided, however, the part of this section requiring the spouse to have been residing with the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member for six months next preceding the date of the injury which resulted in his death shall not apply where marriage occurred during this six-month period or where the officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member was absent during this six-month period due to service in the Armed Forces of the United States.
(f) The term "official duties" means those duties performed while en route to, engaged in, or returning from training, or in the course of responding to, engaged in or returning from a call by the department of which he is a member, or from a call for assistance from any department or such organization within the State of North Carolina or within a service area contiguous to the borders of the State of North Carolina, when served or aided by a department from within the State of North Carolina. While within the State of North Carolina, any eligible person, as defined in this section or in G.S. 58-86-25, who renders service or assistance, of his own volition, at the scene of an emergency, is performing his official duties when:
(1) Reasonably apparent circumstances require prompt decisions and actions to protect persons and property; and
(2) The necessity of immediate action is so reasonably apparent that any delay in acting would seriously worsen the property damage or endanger any person's life. (1959, c. 1323, s. 1; 1965, c. 937; 1969, c. 1025; 1973, c. 634, s. 2; c. 955, ss. 1, 2; 1975, c. 19, s. 49; c. 284, s. 7; 1977, c. 1048; 1979, c. 516, ss. 2, 3; c. 869; 1981, c. 944, s. 1; 1983, c. 761, s. 237; 1987, c. 812; 1987 (Reg. Sess., 1988), c. 1050, s. 1; 1989, c. 727, s. 218(97); 1989 (Reg. Sess., 1990), c. 1024, s. 32; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 833, s. 5; 1997-443, ss. 11A.118(a), 11A.119(a); 2000-137, s. 4(y); 2003-284, s. 30.18A(b); 2004-124, s. 31.18C(a); 2005-276, s. 29.30C; 2005-376, s. 1; 2008-163, s. 1; 2011-145, ss. 13.25(ss), 19.1(h), (l); 2011-183, s. 104; 2012-83, s. 46; 2013-155, s. 20; 2013-198, s. 27; 2013-288, s. 10.)
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Last modified: March 23, 2014