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An ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, amending the Administrative Code of Allegheny County, Part 2, entitled “Organization and Structure of County Government,” Article 201, entitled “Organization of County Government,” in order to establish a protocol for expeditious autopsies of individuals who died in the custody of the Allegheny County Jail.
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Whereas, on May 17, 2005, the voters of Allegheny County approved an amendment to the Home Rule Charter and accompanying amendments to the Administrative Code of Allegheny County via referendum; and
Whereas, these amendments, inter alia, provided for the conversion of the elected Allegheny County Coroner to an appointed Medical Examiner, and established the powers and duties of that Medical Examiner in provisions now codified at §5-201.05 of the Administrative Code; and
Whereas, the provisions of §201.05 clearly and unambiguously establish that “[t]he Medical Examiner shall have all of the powers, functions, and duties previously vested in the elected office of Coroner as set forth in 16 Pa. Stat. §§ 4232-48 and 4250, including without limitation the power of inquest and the power of subpoena, as of the date that the office of Medical Examiner becomes effective.”; and
Whereas, among these provisions of Commonwealth law, 16 P.S. §4235.1(a) establishes that “[r]equests for examinations or other professional services by other counties or persons may be complied with at the discretion of the coroner pursuant to guidelines established by the county commissioners.”; and
Whereas, it is the judgment of Council that the reference to the “county commissioners” in the context of the County’s Medical Examiner must be deemed to refer to the legislative body of the County, insofar as the Medical Examiner’s powers and duties have unambiguously been established within the Administrative Code since the position was created; and
Whereas, the plain language of §4235.1(a) thus provides for ov...
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