Leadership at the morgue

A county morgue evokes the same turn-away reaction as a Mr. Bean film. “The real world is simply too terrible to admit.” Ernest Becker wrote in “The Denial of Death.” “It tells man that he is a small, trembling animal who will someday decay and die.”

The denial instinct facilitates abuse, which makes scrutiny and due diligence essential. As NPR in partnership with PBS “Frontline” and ProPublica report, the nation’s death-investigation bureaucracy is dysfunctional, “short of qualified people, squeezed for resources and lacking in oversight.”

Snohomish County no longer elects a coroner (imagine the ghoulish campaign mailers.) The absence of electoral politics, however, doesn’t ensure best practices.

In 2010, under the administration of ex-County Executive Aaron Reardon, a consultant was brought in at the request of the Snohomish County Council to review complaints about poor morale, department management and workplace conduct. Many internal beefs centered on the short-fused behavior of Medical Examiner Dr. Norman Thiersch.

Trouble has a ripple effect. In 2011, an investigator resigned after facing allegations that he pocketed drugs from those who had just gone to their great reward. In 2012, the office decided not to conduct an autopsy on the body of a 7-year old boy, despite pleas by Monroe detectives.

In September, a former death investigator reached a $495,000 settlement with the county over workplace retaliation (the office has an annual budget of $2.1 million.) One Vincent Price-like accusation has Thiersch expressing his displeasure by yanking the heart and lungs out of a cadaver and flinging them back “into the pool of blood within the chest cavity so as to intentionally splash and splatter blood on the plaintiff’s face and torso.” The settlement doesn’t include an admission of wrongdoing.

The unthinkable what if: What if your spouse died unexpectedly, would you feel comfortable with the medical examiner performing the autopsy?

Snohomish County Executive John Lovick has begun the slow, thankless task of ensuring an accountable Medical Examiner’s office. As The Herald’s Rikki King reports, Lovick’s restructuring includes hiring an operations and staff manager. The from-within shuffle doesn’t signal a staff increase, with the elimination of one of the medical-investigator positions.

Lovick’s quiet reforms represent a constructive start, although changing a department’s culture also requires a leadership shift. Time and again, Thiersch’s behavior factors into department outcomes inconsistent with the public interest. No one claims Thiersch is unqualified. But he is accountable to the people. To restore the people’s faith in the medical examiner’s office, Thiersch needs to resign.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Friday, March 29

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Initiative promoter Tim Eyman takes a selfie photo before the start of a session of Thurston County Superior Court, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, in Olympia, Wash. Eyman, who ran initiative campaigns across Washington for decades, will no longer be allowed to have any financial control over political committees, under a ruling from Superior Court Judge James Dixon Wednesday that blasted Eyman for using donor's contributions to line his own pocket. Eyman was also told to pay more than $2.5 million in penalties. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Editorial: Initiative fee increase protects process, taxpayers

Bumped up to $156 from $5, the increase may discourage attempts to game the initiative process.

Schwab: Who was Langerhans? And when’s the ferry to his islets?

The Herald’s resident retired surgeon slices into the anatomy of the etymology of our anatomy.

Comment: Cervial cancer treatable; if you’re screened for it

A screening for cervical cancer can detect cancerous or precancerous cells and direct treatment.

Comment: Framers gave us Goldilocks Constitution; let’s use it

It was meant to be resilient, not perfect, but it has to be used as designed toward workable solutions.

Comment: GOP in Congress isn’t fighting crime; it’s arming it

Budget cuts to the FBI and ATF and other riders have made it easier for criminals to get firearms.

Washington state senators and representatives along with Governor Inslee and FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez break ground at the Swift Orange Line on Tuesday, April 19, 2022 in Lynnwood, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Community Transit making most of Link’s arrival

The Lynnwood light rail station will allow the transit agency to improve routes and frequency of buses.

An image of Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin is reflected in a storefront window during the State of the City Address on Thursday, March 21, 2024, at thee Everett Mall in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Editorial: State of city address makes case for Everett’s future

Mayor Franklin outlines challenges and responses as the city approaches significant decisions.

FILE - The massive mudslide that killed 43 people in the community of Oso, Wash., is viewed from the air on March 24, 2014. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Editorial: Mapping landslide risks honors those lost in Oso

Efforts continue in the state to map areas prone to landslides and prevent losses of life and property.

Protecting forests and prevent another landslide like Oso

Thank you for the powerful and heartbreaking article about the Oso landslide… Continue reading

Boeing’s downfall started when engineers demoted

Boeing used to be run by engineers who made money to build… Continue reading

Learn swimming safety to protect kids at beach, pool

Don’t forget to dive into water safety before hitting the pool or… Continue reading

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.