CORONER'S PROBLEMS NOT NEW OVERCROWDING A 24-YEAR ISSUE, DIRECTOR TELLS COUNTY BOARD.Byline: TROY ANDERSON Staff Writer The Los Angeles County Coroner's Office has been stacking bodies because of overcrowding overcrowding overcrowding of animal accommodation. Many countries now publish codes of practice which define what the appropriate volumetric allowances should be for each species of animal when they are housed indoors. Breaches of these codes is overcrowding. since 1982, and the situation has steadily worsened over the years, officials told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. ``This problem did not occur overnight,'' coroner's Director Anthony T. Hernandez told the board. ``It's been building over many years.'' It has gotten so bad now that a facility designed to hold 325 bodies now averages 417, with some corpses stacked in unrefrigerated hallways, Hernandez said. Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich Michael Dennis Antonovich (born 1939 in Los Angeles, California) is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors representing the Fifth District, which covers northern Los Angeles County, the Antelope, Santa Clarita, Pasadena, and parts of the San Fernando and San criticized Hernandez for not acting sooner to address the overcrowding, saying, ``There is a management breakdown here.'' Hoping to quell outrage over the mistreatment mis·treat tr.v. mis·treat·ed, mis·treat·ing, mis·treats To treat roughly or wrongly. See Synonyms at abuse. mis·treat of the dead, Hernandez said the office has acquired a refrigerated re·frig·er·ate tr.v. re·frig·er·at·ed, re·frig·er·at·ing, re·frig·er·ates 1. To cool or chill (a substance). 2. To preserve (food) by chilling. container that can store up to 25 bodies. He also plans next week to begin contracting with a private crematory cre·ma·to·ry n. pl. cre·ma·to·ries A crematorium. adj. Of or relating to cremation. crematorium, crematory a place where cremations are done. to help reduce overcrowding. The Coroner's Office is holding about 200 bodies whose families either can't be found or have said they can't afford cremation cremation, disposal of a corpse by fire. It is an ancient and widespread practice, second only to burial. It has been found among the chiefdoms of the Pacific Northwest, among Northern Athapascan bands in Alaska, and among Canadian cultural groups. or burial. After searching for next-of-kin for a year, coroner's officials send the bodies to the morgue morgue (morg) a place where dead bodies may be kept for identification or until claimed for burial. morgue n. for cremation, but that process has been backlogged. Greg Myers, a deputy coroner/forensic attendant, said the current conditions are the worst he's seen in the 25 years he's been working at the Coroner's Office. Bodies are double- and triple-stacked on the floor. ``During the release and transportation process, a lot of times we have the misfortune of stepping on bodies to recover other bodies,'' he said. To expedite the process of searching for next-of-kin, the supervisors asked the County Counsel's Office to prepare a report on what ``due diligence'' steps coroner's officials must take before cremating or burying someone. In the past, judges have made rulings requiring coroner's officials to make concerted efforts to find next-of-kind, Hernandez said. ``We could have next-of-kin in Guam, England or Mexico, all over the world,'' Hernandez said. ``It's a very cumbersome process and it does take time to make sure we have covered all the steps before sending this person to cremation.'' During budget deliberations in June, the supervisors will consider asking for a feasibility study "A Feasibility Study" is an episode of the original The Outer Limits television show. It first aired on 13 April, 1964, during the first season. It was remade in 1997 as part of the revived The Outer Limits series with a minor title change. on spending $20 million to $30 million to refurbish the existing facility or up to $87 million to build an annex. Supervisor Gloria Molina asked officials to prepare a report exploring how the Coroner's Office has handled the overcrowding situation and what options the supervisors have to address it. ``This can only get worse, not better,'' she said. troy.anderson(at)dailynews.com (213) 974-8985 |
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