Here it comes, the predictable use of the victim-identification mixup to push for replacement of elected coroners with appointed medical examiners. But the mistakes that were made really have nothing to do with our coroner system, as the editorial admits:
In the chaotic conditions that followed the April 26 crash, there is no guarantee that a medical examiner wouldn't have made the same mistake that Mowery did. But in a society that reveres human life, the job of identifying the dead and determining how they died is crucial. Indiana's coroner system shouldn't be built on a chance that the deceased will be correctly identified.
If you've been following this story, you will have seen published examples of similar mistakes and noticed that they are few and far between (both geographically and over time). Eliminating the coroner system would require the complicated procedures of changing the state constitution -- passage by two sessions of the legislature, then approval in a statewide referendum. That seems like an awfully big fix for a relatively rare problem.
I like my idea better, which I wrote in a column for Saturday's editorial page:
. . . focusing all the attention on the coroner's office seems wrong . . .
You could make the same arguments about replacing the elected sheriff with an appointed professional, the way cities do with police chiefs. Just as there is no requirement in Indiana law for a coroner to have medical expertise, there is no requirement for sheriffs to be criminal justice experts. A shoe salesman could run for the office.
But you don't hear the same debate, do you? That's because the sheriff's job is so well defined that it matters less who has the job. The law is the law, and the sheriff enforces it. The jail is the jail, and the sheriff runs it. It usually comes down to whether the sheriff is a good administrator or not.
Why not do the same thing with the coroner's office? If the law sufficiently spells out what coroners do and how they have to do it, it matters less who the coroner is. Some of this is already taken care of in the statutes. Appointed deputy coroners, for example, have to undergo a certain amount of training. If an autopsy is required, the coroner must use either a physician certified by the American Board of Pathology or a physician working under the direction of someone with the certification.
The law could just as easily specify the protocols required for confirming identities in traffic fatalities. There are already indications, in fact, that the State Coroners Training Board will take up the issue. An elected position clearly defined by adequate state law
