New medical examiner, staff hired for South Mississippi to reduce case backlog
.JPG "A new medical examiner and staff members have been hired to work on the Mississippi Coast.")
A new chief medical examiner and several staff members were promoted and hired to handle a backlog of cases at the state Medical Examiner’s Office.
Dr. Staci Turner was promoted to chief medical officer and will be based primarily on the Coast. She and her staff will work at the crime lab at the Public Safety Building on Mississippi 607 in Harrison County.
The announcement was made Wednesday by Sean Tindell, commissioner of Mississippi Department of Public Safety.
Turner previously was interim chief medical examiner. Prior to joining the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, she worked as a regional deputy chief medical examiner in Alabama and as an assistant medical examiner in Tennessee. She has a medical degree from the University of Kentucky, graduating with high distinction, and completed her pathology residency training there.
Also serving in new roles at the department are:
▪ Dr. Ariane Robison, deputy medical examiner
▪ Kristy Simmons, director of the State Medical Examiner’s Office
▪ Four new medical examiner investigators — Devin Marlow, Tanya Koehn, Alvin Peoples and Cameron Harrington
“I applaud the legislature and the governor’s office for enacting HB 974, which has allowed the State Medical Examiner’s Office to create new positions that will further help us improve the services that we provide to our citizens,” Tindell said.
Gov. Tate Reeves announced Monday during a press conference on his proposed budget that a medical examiner was hired for the Coast.
Reeves said his administration inherited a crime lab that was significantly behind what is reasonable, “and we have been working to eliminate that backlog.”
He worked with Tindell and Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Pascagoula, to get a medical examiner for the Coast.
“The Coast, just based on sheer numbers, deserves a medical examiner here,” said Wiggins, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He said it’s also the right thing to do for families and law enforcement waiting on the cause of death.
Wiggins said he spoke with Angel Myers McIlrath, district attorney for Jackson, George and Greene counties, who said it’s taken up to three years to get an autopsy and results in some cases.
A couple of years ago Mississippi increased the pay to attract medical examiners, he said. Fewer forensic pathologists are available nationwide, he said, and Mississippi has to compete for those who are licensed.
This story was originally published November 17, 2021 at 5:55 PM.
