2008 Woodie Awards
Change of policy for Illinois coroners
Law change allows coroners to determine the need for death inquests on case-by-case basis
Jordan Crook/City Reporter
Issue date: 3/24/08 Section: News
No inquest will be held in the death of Eastern students Jesse Mounce.
No inquest would be held because the student's families did not wish to have an inquest performed, said Coles County Coroner Mike Nichols.
Nichols is no longer legally bound to perform inquests in cases where the cause of death is relatively obvious.
Inquests, which are public hearings and are similar to a court proceeding, have become optional procedures for Illinois county coroners.
The change in Illinois inquest policy took effect Jan. 1, 2007, after several months of lobbying by the Illinois Coroners and Medical Examiners Association.
Inquests are used to determine the cause of death in any death that might have more than one obvious cause.
Illinois coroners had long wanted the change in policy because the previous statute cost extra time and money for coroners.
The previous statute required coroners to provide an inquest into any death that might have a cause of death considered to be anything but natural - no matter how obvious the cause of death.
Inquest proceedings could also sometimes drag out for weeks, during which time a death certificate cannot be provided to the family, Nichols said. As long as there is no death certificate, no death benefits or estate rulings can be handed out the family.
Nichols is part of the majority of Illinois county coroners who believe this change in law was a good idea.
Edgar County Coroner Peter Templeton said he has had no inquests since the change was made.
Doing away with unnecessary inquests will help save grieving family members from undue stress caused by their involvement in an inquest proceeding, he said.
Some counties have done away with inquests altogether and now rely on the findings of the coroners, Templeton added.
But Effingham County Coroner Leigh Hammer still sees the need for inquests, although she said she appreciates the freedom from costly, unneeded inquest proceedings.
She now usually uses inquests only when there is some disagreement between her and the family members of the deceased about the cause of death.
She recently thought a death was a suicide, but the family refused to believe it. An inquest was brought, and it ruled that the cause of death was, in fact, a suicide, Hammer said.
This example shows that coroners are experts who can determine the cause of death without anyone's help because a coroner usually already knows the cause of death before an inquest is initiated, Hammer said.
"When you bring a case to inquest, you already know the cause of death," Hammer said.
The change in law has widespread effects on coroners across Illinois, she said.
"There are some coroners who will say they will never use (inquests) again, there are some who will use it on a case-by-case basis, and there are some who will do it with every death," Hammer said.
In her own case, Hammer said her own opinion on the cause of death is probably better than a ruling handed down by an inquest jury.
"Who better to determine a cause of death than a coroner?" she said.
Jordan Crook can be reached at 581-7495 or at jscrook@eiu.edu.
No inquest would be held because the student's families did not wish to have an inquest performed, said Coles County Coroner Mike Nichols.
Nichols is no longer legally bound to perform inquests in cases where the cause of death is relatively obvious.
Inquests, which are public hearings and are similar to a court proceeding, have become optional procedures for Illinois county coroners.
The change in Illinois inquest policy took effect Jan. 1, 2007, after several months of lobbying by the Illinois Coroners and Medical Examiners Association.
Inquests are used to determine the cause of death in any death that might have more than one obvious cause.
Illinois coroners had long wanted the change in policy because the previous statute cost extra time and money for coroners.
The previous statute required coroners to provide an inquest into any death that might have a cause of death considered to be anything but natural - no matter how obvious the cause of death.
Inquest proceedings could also sometimes drag out for weeks, during which time a death certificate cannot be provided to the family, Nichols said. As long as there is no death certificate, no death benefits or estate rulings can be handed out the family.
Nichols is part of the majority of Illinois county coroners who believe this change in law was a good idea.
Edgar County Coroner Peter Templeton said he has had no inquests since the change was made.
Doing away with unnecessary inquests will help save grieving family members from undue stress caused by their involvement in an inquest proceeding, he said.
Some counties have done away with inquests altogether and now rely on the findings of the coroners, Templeton added.
But Effingham County Coroner Leigh Hammer still sees the need for inquests, although she said she appreciates the freedom from costly, unneeded inquest proceedings.
She now usually uses inquests only when there is some disagreement between her and the family members of the deceased about the cause of death.
She recently thought a death was a suicide, but the family refused to believe it. An inquest was brought, and it ruled that the cause of death was, in fact, a suicide, Hammer said.
This example shows that coroners are experts who can determine the cause of death without anyone's help because a coroner usually already knows the cause of death before an inquest is initiated, Hammer said.
"When you bring a case to inquest, you already know the cause of death," Hammer said.
The change in law has widespread effects on coroners across Illinois, she said.
"There are some coroners who will say they will never use (inquests) again, there are some who will use it on a case-by-case basis, and there are some who will do it with every death," Hammer said.
In her own case, Hammer said her own opinion on the cause of death is probably better than a ruling handed down by an inquest jury.
"Who better to determine a cause of death than a coroner?" she said.
Jordan Crook can be reached at 581-7495 or at jscrook@eiu.edu.
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