Medical Examiner Model
Definition
A death-inquiry system headed by a forensic pathologist who holds statutory authority to investigate and certify deaths falling within specified categories (homicide, suicide, accident, undetermined, and sudden unexpected death). Used in approximately half of US jurisdictions and many European countries.
- Head official
- Forensic pathologist with statutory authority
- US prevalence
- Roughly half of jurisdictions
- Also used in
- Many European countries
- Death categories covered
- Homicide, suicide, accident, undetermined, sudden unexpected
Common questions
How does the medical examiner model differ from the coroner model in practice?+
Under the medical examiner model the death investigator is required to be a physician, typically a board-certified forensic pathologist, whereas the coroner model often permits an elected lay official with no medical training to hold death-certification authority.
Why do some US jurisdictions still use a coroner instead of a medical examiner?+
The coroner office in many states is a historic elected position written into county or state law, and transitioning to an appointed medical examiner system requires legislative change and funding for forensic pathology staff that many smaller jurisdictions have not pursued.
Related terms
- Algor Mortis
- Postmortem cooling of the body toward ambient temperature, approximately 1-1.5 degrees Celsius per hour under average conditions. Used alongside other postmortem changes...
- Coroner Model
- A death-inquiry system headed by an elected or appointed official (the coroner) who need not be a physician. Holds legal authority to...
- Forensic Nurse Death Investigator (FNDI)
- A registered nurse with medicolegal death investigation training who conducts scene assessment, collects ante-mortem history, documents postmortem findings, and coordinates information between...
- Livor Mortis
- Postmortem pooling of blood in dependent tissues producing a purple-red discolouration. Becomes fixed at roughly 8-12 hours; discordance between liver position and...
- Medicolegal Death Investigator (MLDI)
- A broader category of non-physician death investigators, including but not limited to nurses, who work under the authority of a coroner or...