I have been working at the ME's office for the last three weeks. Wow. While I can't talk about the specifics of what I see every day down in the autopsy suites, at least I can post the local news stories about the cases that are coming down to the morgue.I attempt to find stories that don't list the names, but some stories are so widespread that names have already gotten out. Most of those are the locally high profile killings and deaths. While I might list that we did a suicide on a particular day, although I know the person's name, I don't list the obituary because I think that would be disrespectful to the person, and especially to the surviving family.
Some deaths, though, no one reads about. The prisoners who die while serving their sentences. The single overdoses that are found by friends or family members. I add the suicides in here, because they sometimes don't even get an obituary. Children are in here because SIDs, suicides and sudden deaths, for the most part, don't get reported. And the tiny victims of drug-influenced mothers who never live to take their first breaths, mostly because they are too premature or died before they were born, they generate no print as well.
We had a full room today. Three tables all going at once. No news stories on any of them. They were simply: The Overdose, The Accidental Overdose, and The Found in Woods.
Stories that did make the news from earlier this week:
Hot Dog Death
Shooting on Porch
Until next week!
3 comments:
The senselessness of it all really strikes home. Hope your learning alot.
I would think babies/children would be the hardest to do examinations on. that I bet no one ever gets "used to". Such bizarre cases too like the guy eating and driving and food getting stuck in his esophagus. How many of us just do that routinely without thinking of anything (not the food getting stuck, but you know what I mean with driving and eating). Makes you try to be as careful as you can with life and just trust in God.
so do you only have one more week at the ME's office?
betty
Sad to think so many lives are lost without a bit of recognition. The babies would break my heart, the mothers should be charged in my opinion.
How awful that teen will always be remembered as the one who choked on a hot dog. What a sad commentary.
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