Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner information
Medical Examiner's Office, LA County, California, United States of America
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Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner
Department overview
Formed
June 24, 1850
Jurisdiction
Los Angeles County, California
Headquarters
Boyle Heights, California
Department executive
Odey C, Ukpo M.D., Chief Medical Examiner
Website
me.lacounty.gov
Los Angeles County Medical Examiner Building in 2008
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner (“DMEC”, formerly the Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner and Department of Coroner) was created in its present form on December 17, 1920 by an ordinance approved by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, although it has existed in some form since the appointment of the first county coroner in 1850.[1] It is headquartered in Boyle Heights. On September 3, 2020, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved the name change for the department, from the Department of Coroner to the Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner.[2]
On July 9, 2010, the Board of Supervisors approved the appointment of Mark A. Fajardo, the Chief Forensic Pathologist at Riverside County, as the new Medical Examiner-Coroner, at an annual salary of $275,000.[3] He formally replaced Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran, who served 2 years as the Coroner, in August 2013.[4]
Dr. Mark Fajardo resigned in March 2016. A news report indicated that "he left because it became common to have up to 50 bodies waiting to be processed and the backlog of bodies was 'nuts'. ... and toxicology tests were taking six months to complete" due to inadequate staffing.[5] Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran was re-appointed, but as interim coroner, on April 11, 2016.
Dr. Jonathan R. Lucas was appointed as the Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner on July 10, 2017. Dr. Lucas announced his intent to leave DMEC in September 2022. On November 4, 2022, Dr. Odey C. Ukpo, Medical Director of the Department, was sworn in as Interim Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner. Dr. Ukpo is the first African American to serve as Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner since the office was established in 1850. Dr. Ukpo joined the Department in 2014 and served as a Senior Deputy Medical Examiner before being named Medical Director in June 2022.[6][7] On March 7, 2023, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors appointed Ukpo as Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner.[8]
^Waldron, Granville Arthur (Dec 1959). "Courthouses of Los Angeles County". The Historical Society of Southern California Quarterly. 41 (4). University of California Press: 345–374. doi:10.2307/41169414. JSTOR 41169414. Retrieved 16 Aug 2023. The state legislature then ordered elections to be held in the counties on April 1, 1850, for the purpose of electing county officials… The Court of Sessions held its first meeting on June 24, 1850, attended by most of the newly elected County officials. This marked the official beginning of county government in Los Angeles.
^"Countywide Classification Actions to Change the Name of the Department of Coroner and Implement the Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Final Budget" (PDF). Chief Executive Office. County of Los Angeles. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
^"Appointment, Salary, and Relocation Reimbursement for Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner" (PDF). Chief Executive Office. County of Los Angeles. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
^Villacorte, Christina (September 4, 2013). "L.A.'s first new coroner in decades faces tough tasks". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
^"2016 in Review: 16 LA stories that mattered this year - Coroner Resigns". Los Angeles Daily News. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
^"LLA County appoints Ukpo as interim coroner". Los Angeles Daily News. November 6, 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
^"Dr. Odey C. Ukpo appointed by Board of Supervisors as Interim Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner". County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner-Coroner. 4 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
^"Dr. Odey C. Ukpo Appointed as Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner. On June 29, 2023, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors officially approved a name change for the department to the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner, with the newly renamed department addressing in a statement that the removal of "coroner" was needed to reinforce the department's role as an unbiased and independent investigative agency, unattached to any law enforcement agency". Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner. County of Los Angeles. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
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