LA County Coroner changes name to Department of Medical Examiner

In Los Angeles, it's medical examiner, not coroner from now on. 

The County's Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner has officially dropped its hyphenate after the Board of Supervisors approved its name change yesterday.

"Our commitment to the community and families we serve remains the same – to provide independent, quality death investigation using advanced forensic science," said Dr. Odey Ukpo, Chief Medical Examiner.  

The name change has been years in the making after the board approved a November 2019 motion to drop the "coroner." According to the Department of Medical Examiner, the new moniker will reinforce its chief role as an unbiased forensics agency not tied to any law enforcement agency. 

There are a few differences between the two names. Typically, a coroner is elected to their position and is often tied to the Sheriff's Department. Additionally, a chief medical examiner is required to be a physician, certified by the American Board of Pathology in the medical specialty of Forensic Pathology and experienced in forensic sciences. 

"The name change offers clarity in our identity, solidifying our independence from any law enforcement agency and emphasizes our deputy medical examiners as physicians with appropriate training to determine the cause and manner of death for our decedents," said Ukpo.

The change took a few years to come to fruition, thanks to delays partly caused by the pandemic and some red tape, but the rollout has started with the Medical Examiner coordinating how their emails, forms, uniforms and other formalities will alter.