Lycoming County Coroner's Office

03/25/2026

Every local, state and federal Legislator needs to see this. Thank you to Rep. Joe Hamm who has introduced legislation for line of duty death for Coroners and Medical Examiners but unfortunately this has not passed in PA. Hopefully with bipartisan support this legislation moves forward. Also he has introduced legislation to restore JNET access to Coroner's and Medical Examiners allowing us to more rapidly identifying the deceased, locating next of kin and determining if the deceased has decided to be an organ and tissue donor saving lives of others. Currently time and organs are lost with Coroner's and Medical Examiners not having this access to this system.

A recent conversation about the number of Medicolegal Death Professionals (coroners, MEs, medicolegal investigators, deputies, autopsy technicians, etc.) there are got me thinking about some crucial statistics.

There are roughly 11,000 Medicolegal Death Professionals in the United States.

That’s it.

Now consider this.

The United States has a population of more than 330 million people.

That means there is roughly one Medicolegal Death Professional for every 30,000 Americans.

But the numbers get even more interesting.

Each year, about 3.4 million people die in the United States.

An estimated 20-30% of those deaths fall under medicolegal jurisdiction - deaths that are sudden, unexpected, violent, unattended, or otherwise require legal investigation.

That means roughly 700,000 to 1,000,000 deaths every year require investigation by medicolegal professionals.

And the national workforce responsible for that work is about 11,000 people.

These professionals operate at the intersection of:

• public safety
• public health
• the criminal justice system

They respond to difficult scenes.

They speak with families during the most devastating moments of their lives.

They document the facts that become legal records, criminal evidence, and public health data.

Yet the profession itself remains largely invisible to the public.

Despite the critical role they serve, Medicolegal Death Professionals are often not afforded the same statutory protections, recognition, or wellness infrastructure that exist for many other public safety responders.

In many jurisdictions, these professionals respond to traumatic scenes, work alongside law enforcement and fire agencies, and carry legal responsibility for death investigations - yet the policy framework supporting them has not evolved at the same pace.

In a country of more than 330 million people…less than 0.003% carry this legal responsibility.

Awareness matters.

Recognition matters.

Support matters.

Because if the law requires a response, the responder should not be invisible. The law should protect the responder.

That is one of the many reasons Last Responder exists - to help bring recognition, support, and a unified voice to this profession.

If you are a Medicolegal Death Professional, comment the state you serve in and your role (Coroner, ME, Investigator, Deputy, Autopsy Tech, etc.).

I’m curious how far this community reaches.

01/23/2026

As I look over the 2025 statistics for our office we investigated 21 Su***des last year which is well above the national average. Most of these deaths were by fi****ms and therefore it is critical to secure fi****ms from persons suffering with depression and having suicidal thoughts. See the photo below. We have FREE gunlocks here in our office at 3341 Wahoo Drive for anyone in need so stop in at any time during regular office hours.

12/24/2025

This is a problem in every community. Here in Lycoming County with assistance from Lycoming College to secure some funding and Pennsylvania College of Technology Construction Students we were able to construct a building in the cemetery to hold more than 70 unclaimed cremains

Let’s be very clear: a Coroner’s Office is not a transport service.

Transport is the smallest part of what we do.

When someone dies with no family, no money, no advocate, and no one willing or able to take responsibility, they don’t just “go away.”

They sit in a morgue. For weeks. Months. Sometimes years.

And guess who carries that burden?

The Coroner’s Office.

The body remains in the legal custody of the Coroner’s Office - sometimes for months, sometimes longer - while staff work to identify, notify, document, safeguard, and ultimately ensure lawful and dignified disposition.

Today, ten people - ten human beings - were finally laid to rest because a Coroner’s Office refused to let them remain forgotten. Graves marked. Names acknowledged. Dignity restored.

Great work Dale County Coroner's Office!

People please - ask yourself this — without looking away…Would you be okay knowing your body was sitting in cold storage of a morgue because no one could afford to bury you?

Because no one answered the phone?

Because the work required time, money, and compassion - and someone decided it “wasn’t their job”?

This is what underfunding coroners looks like.

This is what misunderstanding our role creates.

This is what happens when people reduce our work to “body transport.”

We are the last caretakers of people who no longer have a voice.

We don’t get to walk away.

We don’t get to say “not our problem.”

Every person - regardless of circumstance - deserves a proper, respectful final disposition.

Anything less is a failure of the community.

If this makes you uncomfortable, it should.

Now act accordingly.

~ Last Responder
The final response deserves a first line of support!

12/24/2025

13 years and we are finally just weeks away from moving into our new facility which will meet the needs of our office for the first time in 25 years. No more scraping ice and jump starting dead trucks to respond on calls at all hours of the day, nights, weekends and holidays. The garage provides a place to decontaminate vehicles and equipment. Showers and laundry for staff. Morgue facilities to hold deceased while investigating deaths, collect and retain evidence. A CT scanner was secured with grant funding which will assist us with investigating the cause of death reducing the cost of autopsy's when appropriate.

Have a Merry Christmas and Safe Happy New Year!

10/14/2025

After 26 years we continue to serve the residents of Lycoming County. Thank you to my Deputies who as a team we get through some of the worst situations supporting families as well as ourselves!!

When you see a last responder (death investigator), remember this - we’ve already walked through the worst day of someone’s life today.

We’ve held their silence, carried their sorrow, and gone home pretending we’re fine.

We are human. And every scene, every story, every name stays with us - even when you don’t know.

———

I cried when I saw your daughter lying in a ditch, dead from m**h - But how could you know?

I was devastated when I found the 32 year old veteran dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound - But how could you know?

I missed my kids birthdays, school plays and family trips because I had to work - But how could you know?

I had nightmares about the 2 year old crushed under a truck tire while mom was inside buying dope - But how could you know?

I struggled with EVERY death notification I made to a family about their loved one - But how could you know?

I am never comfortable at social gatherings because with the things I've seen, I can't trust anyone -But how could you know?

I've seen things you could never even imagine - But how could you know?

My job was hard on my family - But how could you know?

I had problems, just like everyone else - But how could you know?

So the next time you see a last responder, remember - we are the quiet witnesses to humanity’s hardest moments.

We carry stories that never make the news,
grief that never finds words,
and faces we can never forget.

We are people first - parents, friends, neighbors - trying to make sense of a world that too often ends in tragedy.

There is no training for the weight we carry,
only the hope that, in speaking for the dead,we somehow honor the living.

10/13/2025

We are one month away from our yearly Coroner, Law Enforcement and EMS CE Day training here in Lycoming County. The program has been approved for Coroner, EMS, Attorney CLE and Nursing CE hours. This should be an excellent day of training with other medical legal professionals.

Thank you to Valor Technical Cleaning for sponsoring this event along with the Lycoming County Law Enforcement Association!

07/20/2025

Are you a Firefighter and/or EMT attending Penn College or Lycoming college this fall? We currently have 2 live-in openings for the 2025 -2026 school year!

Benefits of becoming a Live In:

Free housing at the fire station or a nearby 3 bedroom 2 bath apartment with high speed internet in exchange for 36 hours per week of staffing availability.

Training and running 800+ calls per year with an advanced and progressive Engine / Rescue company with 20+ working fire runs per year.

Paid per call opportunities for Ambulance operations.

The ability to become qualified to ride on our career Engine 14-1 staffed by Williamsport Bureau of Fire personnel that runs an average of 1200 calls per year.

Free training!

Message or email us if you are interested!

**Preferences are give to individuals with current EMT and/or FF1 certifications**

www.station14.org

07/18/2025

With 13 Su***de Deaths investigated this year, I thought this is appropriate to share. Also, anyone suffering with depression should reach out for help by calling 988, 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433), or 570-326-7895 in Lycoming County.

05/17/2025

Some updated photos of our new home in progress.

05/15/2025

Lycoming County has a new notification system available for special notices and emergency notifications. It's free to sign up, check it out!

05/14/2025

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