ABSTRACT

The most common type of medicolegal death investigation system can be described by using the Ohio example. In Ohio there are 88 counties, each of which has its own death investigation system. Each county has a person who is officially responsible for conducting medicolegal death investigations, and in those counties that person is called the coroner (except in Summit County, which has a medical examiner system). Although the coroners in the counties in Ohio must be physicians, most are not pathologists and cannot conduct autopsies. When a reportable death occurs, the coroner is notified and conducts an investigation. However, if an autopsy is needed, he or she may rely on local pathologists or forensic pathologists to conduct autopsies for them. Some cities and counties, such as Franklin County (Columbus, Ohio) and Hamilton County (Cincinnati, Ohio) have dedicated physical facilities out of which the coroner operates. These facilities house forensic pathologists and other pathologists to conduct autopsies. Many of these pathologists work full time for the coroner. However in smaller counties, which may not even have a hospital, the coroner may have to rely on nearby hospital pathologists or other persons who may be located in different counties to conduct autopsies or examinations of bodies when needed. The death investigation system is not organized on the statewide level, and there is no state agency that collects the death investigation information from all 88 counties. Each county maintains its own information. Every four years, when elections occur, a new coroner may be elected and procedures may change slightly. Many states that have similar types of systems in which death investigations and record keeping are maintained at the county level. This type of system has advantages in that death investigation services are based locally, which means there is someone in relatively close proximity that can investigate deaths. There are, however, disadvantages due to the large number of people involved, which makes statewide coordination of services difficult. Consistency in quality from one county to another may also be difficult to achieve. Further, many of the people conducting the death investigations may not be specifically educated, trained, or experienced in the field of death investigation.