UNION COUNTY, N.C. — Plans are now in motion to build a temporary medical examiner’s office in Union County that could help local law enforcement solve cases faster.
The county told Channel 9′s Gina Esposito that it is finalizing its contract with the state to open the office at Atrium Monroe.
That contract will determine how much money the state would pay the county to conduct autopsies.
This effort has been over a year in the making.
[ PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Union County crime lab to help speed up criminal cases ]
“This is very important not just to Union County, but to this whole nine-county region,” said Chief Deputy Tony Underwood with the Union County Sheriff’s Office.
Underwood said the sheriff’s office is ready for a new regional medical center to open in the county.
When it does, the office will initially conduct autopsies for Union, Cabarrus, and Anson counties, eventually serving nine counties in the area.
Currently, the Union County Sheriff’s Office averages 40 to 50 autopsies a year.
“The medical examiner’s office was short-staffed, and with the increase of drug overdose cases due to fentanyl, there was a great need for a full autopsy,” Underwood explained.
In 2023, Channel 9 investigated a statewide autopsy backlog, as well as the push for a regional medical examiner’s office.
[ PREVIOUS COVERAGE: 9 Investigates: Incomplete autopsies from state impacting deadly NC drug cases ]
At the time, the state was sending Union County’s cases to Wake County and wasn’t doing full autopsies because of staffing shortages.
Underwood said full autopsies are needed to prosecute dealers who sell drugs that lead to an overdose death.
“I know even last week there was one or more than one potential overdose death that would require a full autopsy,” Underwood said.
Union County said the temporary medical examiner’s office will be used until a permanent one opens in October 2027.
Underwood emphasized that having an autopsy done close to home will help local law enforcement agencies get results faster and hopefully provide more answers for victims and their families.
“The need is there. We are ready to see some action,” Underwood said.
Union County said the temporary office could open by mid-December.
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