Accredited by National Association of Medical Examiner's Accreditation |
District Six Medical Examiner
The District Six Medical Examiner's office serves Pinellas and Pasco Counties.
Mission Statement:
The mission of the Medical Examiner’s office is to fulfill the needs outlined in F.S. 406, to be of service to families of the deceased, and local government agencies. In short, our mission is to determine the cause and manner of death under certain circumstances. This mission requires the utmost objectivity irrespective of personal beliefs or emotional attachment to the circumstances of any particular case.
Hours:
The front office is open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., excluding holidays, for business matters. After hours and on observed holidays, all phone calls are directed to an answering service. Staff is available for reports of death and death investigations 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including holidays.
Medical Examiner Staff:
Jon R. Thogmartin, M.D., Chief Medical Examiner
Noel Palma, M.D., Deputy Chief Medical Examiner
Susan Ignacio, M.D., Associate Medical Examiner
Chris Wilson, M.D., Associate Medical Examiner
Wayne Kurz, M.D., Associate Medical Examiner
Kailee Imperatore, MD
Noel Agudo, MD
William A. Pellan, Director of Investigations
Damon Breton, Chief Forensic Investigator
Laura Guevara, Morgue Supervisor
Duties:
Florida State Statutes Ch. 406.11, Florida Administrative Code 11G-2
A. The medical examiner is required by law to determine the cause and manner
of death when a person dies:
1. of criminal violence;
2. by accident;
3. by suicide;
4. suddenly, when in apparent good health;
5. unattended by a practicing physician;
6. in any prison or penal institution;
7. in police custody;
8. in any suspicious or unusual circumstance;
9. by criminal abortion;
10. by poison;
11. by disease constituting a threat to public heath; or
12. by disease, injury or toxic agent resulting from employment.
B. Authority:
§ "(2)(a) The district medical examiner shall have the authority in any case coming under subsection (1) to perform, or have performed, whatever autopsies or laboratory examinations he or she deems necessary and in the public interest to determine the identification of or cause or manner of death of the deceased
or to obtain evidence necessary for forensic examination." (s. 406.11, Florida Statutes)
C. The need for complete investigation of deaths under medical examiner jurisdiction was recognized when Florida Statutes 406 was written:
§ "…Any person who knowingly fails or refuses to report such death and circumstances, who refuses to make available prior medical or other information pertinent to the death investigation, or who, without an order from the office of the district medical examiner, willfully touches, removes or disturbs the body, clothing or any article upon or near the body...shall be guilty of a misdemeanor
of the first degree..." (s. 406.12, Florida Statutes, emphasis added)