Posted on October 16, 2017
Author Anita Goodan, WKVI
The Starke County Council will meet tonight where public hearings are scheduled for the 2018 county budget as well as the 2018 budget for the Starke County Solid Waste District. The council is also expected to adopt the 2018 budget for the Starke County Airport.
The council held public hearings on these items in a prior meeting, but the hearings could not be counted as legal as a proper quorum was not in place. Three council members were physically in attendance while another was present via teleconference which didn’t count as a legal meeting.
A transfer and appropriation request is also on tonight’s agenda. A monthly report from the Starke County Economic Development Foundation is anticipated and Starke County Coroner Dannie Hoffer will discuss a request for pay increases in next year’s budget.
The Starke County Council will meet at 5:30 p.m. CT in the meeting room in Starke County Annex Building No. 1 in Knox.
Showing posts with label Starke County Coroner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Starke County Coroner. Show all posts
Monday, October 16, 2017
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
Starke County Coroner Asked to Formalize Procedures Amid Legal Concerns
Posted on August 29, 2017
Author Michael Gallenberger, WKVI
Starke County Coroner Dannie Hoffer says he’s taking steps to save the county money, but other county officials are worried that could lead to some legal troubles. Hoffer addressed several concerns during last week’s county council and county commissioners meetings.
For one thing, Council President Freddie Baker noted that Hoffer was using his own personal computer to conduct county business. Hoffer said his $500 office supply budget would not be enough to buy a computer for the coroner’s office. “I’m trying to go as slowly as I can,” he said. “I’m not trying to cost the county more money.”
“But what it’s going to do in the end is it’s going to cost us money,” Baker replied. “If something goes wrong, how many times today do we hear that somebody’s using their own computer and doing municipal business on that computer, yours, how do you protect it? You can’t.”
The commissioners asked Hoffer to discuss the issue with County IT Director Mark Gourley, to see if some extra equipment may be available or if the cost could be covered by the IT budget. Hoffer added that he purchased several items for the new county morgue out of his own pocket, including a bathroom vanity, shelves, and a refrigerator.
Allowing other coroners to use the morgue without a formal agreement in place was also a cause of concern for the commissioners and council members. Hoffer explained that Starke County would not be liable for mistakes made by other coroners on the property. Still, County Attorney Marty Lucas said it would be better to put it in writing. “It never hurts to have a piece of paper where the person is saying in advance, ‘We’re going to use your facility, but we’re going to indemnify and hold you harmless from any claim related to the facility usage,'” Lucas said.
Hoffer has discussed charging LaPorte County’s coroner to use the morgue. However, he has been letting Marshall County use it for free, after the coroner there provided some free help with a couple of Starke County cases. “They did take a case from here, took it over, came back, done the autopsy, took the baby back, brought him back over here, never charged us a dime for the autopsy, the removal, the storage, nothing,” Hoffer explained. “1:30 in the morning, we had the homicide-suicide. We only had room for one person left in the cooler. We called Marshall County. They came at 1:30 in the morning all the way to Monterey, picked up the gentlemen, took him back to their morgue, held him overnight, brought him back to Starke County the next day for the autopsy, never charged us a dime.”
Meanwhile, Hoffer asked the council and commissioners for a pay raise, saying that he’s the lowest-paid coroner in the state. The request was tabled, until the commissioners could do some research of their own.
Author Michael Gallenberger, WKVI
Starke County Coroner Dannie Hoffer says he’s taking steps to save the county money, but other county officials are worried that could lead to some legal troubles. Hoffer addressed several concerns during last week’s county council and county commissioners meetings.
For one thing, Council President Freddie Baker noted that Hoffer was using his own personal computer to conduct county business. Hoffer said his $500 office supply budget would not be enough to buy a computer for the coroner’s office. “I’m trying to go as slowly as I can,” he said. “I’m not trying to cost the county more money.”
“But what it’s going to do in the end is it’s going to cost us money,” Baker replied. “If something goes wrong, how many times today do we hear that somebody’s using their own computer and doing municipal business on that computer, yours, how do you protect it? You can’t.”
The commissioners asked Hoffer to discuss the issue with County IT Director Mark Gourley, to see if some extra equipment may be available or if the cost could be covered by the IT budget. Hoffer added that he purchased several items for the new county morgue out of his own pocket, including a bathroom vanity, shelves, and a refrigerator.
Allowing other coroners to use the morgue without a formal agreement in place was also a cause of concern for the commissioners and council members. Hoffer explained that Starke County would not be liable for mistakes made by other coroners on the property. Still, County Attorney Marty Lucas said it would be better to put it in writing. “It never hurts to have a piece of paper where the person is saying in advance, ‘We’re going to use your facility, but we’re going to indemnify and hold you harmless from any claim related to the facility usage,'” Lucas said.
Hoffer has discussed charging LaPorte County’s coroner to use the morgue. However, he has been letting Marshall County use it for free, after the coroner there provided some free help with a couple of Starke County cases. “They did take a case from here, took it over, came back, done the autopsy, took the baby back, brought him back over here, never charged us a dime for the autopsy, the removal, the storage, nothing,” Hoffer explained. “1:30 in the morning, we had the homicide-suicide. We only had room for one person left in the cooler. We called Marshall County. They came at 1:30 in the morning all the way to Monterey, picked up the gentlemen, took him back to their morgue, held him overnight, brought him back to Starke County the next day for the autopsy, never charged us a dime.”
Meanwhile, Hoffer asked the council and commissioners for a pay raise, saying that he’s the lowest-paid coroner in the state. The request was tabled, until the commissioners could do some research of their own.
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Out-of-County Autopsy Costs a Concern for Starke County Coroner
Posted on August 23, 2017
Author Michael Gallenberger, WKVI
Starke County’s coroner says out-of-county autopsies are causing a big strain on his budget. Now, county officials may be looking to state lawmakers to help ease that burden.
Coroner Dannie Hoffer told the county council Monday he’s expecting to get some bills for autopsies of Starke County residents who died outside the county. When people are taken to hospitals in places like South Bend or Fort Wayne, it’s up to the local coroner’s office to conduct any necessary autopsies, if they die there. But state law requires the county of origin to reimburse them for the cost.
The problem, according to Hoffer, is that an autopsy in St. Joseph County often costs twice as much as one done in Starke County. “They take them up to Michigan, and we have to pay for a transfer fee,” he explained. “We have to pay for an expensive doctor, housing, hospital, all that stuff. Do I agree with that? I’ve talked to him before. I don’t agree with it because I can get them done a lot cheaper, but by law, I can’t bring them back to Starke County and then autopsy them. It has to be done in the county that they died in.” Hoffer said he saves money on autopsies by using a less expensive pathologist and by transporting bodies himself.
County Attorney Marty Lucas said he couldn’t find anything in state law limiting the cost of autopsies, or even preventing coroner’s offices from charging other counties higher fees. “When we get the bills, we ought to look at that,” he said. “I wouldn’t mind preparing a letter on that, saying that this seems like an unfair burden on counties that are on the other end of that. That’s not what the law was intended to do. The law was intended to protect the counties that were importing cases, like Allen County, which makes sense.”
Hoffer also presented council members with a detailed list of autopsies conducted by his office, along with his reasoning for doing them. Coroners in Marshall and Pulaski counties have also reported a significant increase in their autopsy numbers, in recent months.
Author Michael Gallenberger, WKVI
Starke County’s coroner says out-of-county autopsies are causing a big strain on his budget. Now, county officials may be looking to state lawmakers to help ease that burden.
Coroner Dannie Hoffer told the county council Monday he’s expecting to get some bills for autopsies of Starke County residents who died outside the county. When people are taken to hospitals in places like South Bend or Fort Wayne, it’s up to the local coroner’s office to conduct any necessary autopsies, if they die there. But state law requires the county of origin to reimburse them for the cost.
The problem, according to Hoffer, is that an autopsy in St. Joseph County often costs twice as much as one done in Starke County. “They take them up to Michigan, and we have to pay for a transfer fee,” he explained. “We have to pay for an expensive doctor, housing, hospital, all that stuff. Do I agree with that? I’ve talked to him before. I don’t agree with it because I can get them done a lot cheaper, but by law, I can’t bring them back to Starke County and then autopsy them. It has to be done in the county that they died in.” Hoffer said he saves money on autopsies by using a less expensive pathologist and by transporting bodies himself.
County Attorney Marty Lucas said he couldn’t find anything in state law limiting the cost of autopsies, or even preventing coroner’s offices from charging other counties higher fees. “When we get the bills, we ought to look at that,” he said. “I wouldn’t mind preparing a letter on that, saying that this seems like an unfair burden on counties that are on the other end of that. That’s not what the law was intended to do. The law was intended to protect the counties that were importing cases, like Allen County, which makes sense.”
Hoffer also presented council members with a detailed list of autopsies conducted by his office, along with his reasoning for doing them. Coroners in Marshall and Pulaski counties have also reported a significant increase in their autopsy numbers, in recent months.
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