DeLand, FL - The county could soon have a new medical examiner, but only if the board agrees to it.
Back in May of 2018, Volusia County's Chief Medical Examiner Sara Zydowicz resigned for "personal reasons" after holding the job for a month.
But, not long after her resignation, Zydowicz sent a letter to the Florida Medical Examiners Commission that detailed dangerous conditions within the morgue.
In that letter, Zydowicz mentioned that the morgue cooler was over capacity, the officer was "critically" understaffed and around 200 cases were backlogged.
“I am deeply concerned about the state of the office and the County’s long-standing pattern of lack of response in addressing these issues,” Zydowicz said in her letter. “The office has been neglected to the point that daily work is, at times, not possible, and the risk of critical error is uncomfortably high.”
A month later, the county offered the interim job to Dr. Jon Thogmartin, who did the same work in Pinellas County for around 20 years.
Now, almost a year after the incident, the county could have a permanent medical examiner ready.
Joanne Magley, the community information director for the county, confirmed that current county manager George Recktenwald has offered the job to Dr. James Fulcher.
According to Magley, the offer would have Dr. Fulcher take over the current contract the county has with Dr. Thogmartin with no change in the contract price.
But, before he can take the job, the county council would have to approve the offer.
