Rush County's Jail and Coroner's Office

Roles of a Deputy Coroner

My job as a deputy coroner has a lot of important roles. Rush County is a small county, much smaller than Marion County here in Indianapolis. We cover multiple other small towns, including Arlington, Carthage, Manilla, Milroy, Mays, Falmouth, and Homer. Since it's so small, one person does jobs that are often done by multiple people. For example, photographing the scene, collecting and packaging evidence, reconstructing the scene, and interviewing any witnesses/family are all roles that are required. Some other tasks include writing reports, filling out forms on a case-by-case basis, attending autopsies,  and having designated on-call hours. They also paid for my training to get certified as a medicolegal investigator.

There are many connections between my engaged learning and school. You can also learn valuable things from those who suffered from unfortunate circumstances.

It is unfortunate to say that my life experiences from cases have allowed me to implement a variety of precautions in my life. Everyone likes to take shortcuts once in a while and believes statements like, "It won't happen to me." However, this is very wrong. For example, one case I worked on dealt with a motorcycle accident where the rider died from blunt force trauma to the head. As you can assume, he was not wearing a helmet. Many people know to wear a helmet; however, few actually get to experience exactly why that is. Throughout history, humans have learned from those who came before them. Laws are put in place because somewhere, somehow, a death occurred, and they are enforced to protect everyone.

Something from my engaged learning that taught me something new were autopsies. I had never seen one before, either online, in pictures, or in person. Many people tell me they'd just LOVE to be able to sit in on an autopsy, and at first, I was right there with them. The human body is an interesting art, especially being able to see concretely what caused their death. However, I came to learn that it is a stressful environment to be in. For my first autopsy experience, I was asked to participate. Meaning they wanted me to take visceral fluid from an overdose victim. Who would have thought that it was a lot harder than it sounds and I was unable to do it? So I stood there, silently observing while others, including the autopsy technician, were having a casual conversation. In some sense, it's a traumatizing experience that can only get better by doing it over and over again. From watching autopsies, I discovered I don't get queasy from smells or sights nor feel the need to leave. I learned that in these high-stress environments, I am able to stop, take a deep breath, observe my surroundings, and proceed through it. Thus, the skill I developed is extreme stress management. The best way to counteract this is to change your way of thinking. 

Think: This is someone's loved one, someone in my community. someone I may know. They are deceased. I am their last best friend. 

This engaged learning affected my emotional maturity vastly. At times, it is important that you are able to put away your emotions and think about them later. Like every other deputy coroner or coroner I've met, we all feel as though the community we serve is able to grieve and move past the loss of a loved one thanks to our help. In a way, the community had an impact on me too. You meet so many different people, and it requires you to think carefully about your next words, develop empathy, and develop an understanding of the balance between professionalism and compassion. From my experience, I am seeing people in their most vulnerable moments of their lives and yet, I can connect with them and be their support system.

 This engaged learning opportunity has not only taught me my profound role in aiding the community, but also the responsibility and commitment to promote healing in those who are facing tragedy. I do believe I made a lasting difference in certain people's lives, as they can solely finish the grieving process of their loved one while understanding they were treated with respect and love as though they were my own family. 

Thanks to this experience, I am more open to coroner jobs. While some may think it pays a hefty amount, it does not. Coroners and deputy coroners do this job because they care about other people and assist them in their deepest time of need. 

Before I took this engaged learning, I didn't know exactly what field of forensics I wanted to go in. Now, I'm still not sure what field I would like to go into, but I am grateful for having experienced the "raw" end of it. Since I am in the biology concentration of forensics, my major would allow me to develop a career in serology or other body fluid testing. I'd like to look into the possibility of getting an internship at a crime lab. That way, I have both skills and can put myself above others in this competitive field. Eventually, I will get my masters in forensic science from IUI and expand my possibilities from there. After all, there's the capability of becoming a professor or even going into the FBI. 

To put it simply, I have not completely decided on my career goals, and that's okay. I am still in the process of figuring out what I enjoy and will want to do for the remainder of my life. I enjoy the stimulating aspect of forensics, and I'm glad that wherever I decide to go, it will allow me to think critically and justly incarcerate criminals.