The Education of a Coroner: Lessons in Investigating DeathAn “entertaining” (Booklist) account of the mysterious, hair-raising, and heartbreaking cases handled by the coroner of Marin County, California throughout his four decades on the job—from high-profile deaths and serial killers to inmate murders and Golden Gate Bridge suicides. Marin County, California is a study in contradictions. Its natural beauty attracts celebrity residents and thousands of visitors every year, yet the county also is home to San Quentin Prison, one of the oldest and largest penitentiaries in the United States. Marin ranks in the top one percent of counties nationwide in terms of affluence and overall health, yet it is far above the norm in drug overdoses and alcoholism, not to mention the large percentage of suicides that occur on the Golden Gate Bridge. Ken Holmes worked in the Marin County Coroner’s Office for thirty-six years, starting as a death investigator and ending as the three-term, elected coroner. As he grew into the job—one that is far different from the forensics we see on television—Holmes learned a variety of skills, from finding hidden clues at death scenes, interviewing witnesses effectively, managing bystanders and reporters, and preparing testimony for court to how to notify families of a death with sensitivity and compassion. He also learned about different kinds of firearms, all types of drugs—prescription and illegal—and about certain unexpected and potentially fatal phenomena, such as autoeroticism. Complete with poignant anecdotes, The Education of a Coroner is “riveting and complex…supremely entertaining reading material and…a fascinating and wildly informative dive into the mysterious world of death and decay” (Kirkus Reviews). |
Contents
Baptism by Fire | |
The Barbecue Murders | |
14K3 1049 1055 | |
At the Scene | |
The Overdose That Wasnt | |
Investigating Homicides | |
The German Tourist | |
Investigating the Unusual | |
Bones and a Frozen Infant | |
Investigating Abuse | |
Remembrances of October | |
Cases in the News | |
The Mitchell Brothers | |
Notes and Notifications | |
The Trailside Killer | |
Inside San Quentin | |
An Unnecessary Death | |
Investigating Suicides | |
The Bridge | |
Power Struggles | |
A Supervisors Wrath | |
Ending and Beginning | |
Photographs | |
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Common terms and phrases
33-year-old female accidental death April assistant coroner attorney August autopsy Blinder blood body bones Brett’s brothers California California Highway Patrol Candace Carol cell Center coroner coroner’s investigator coroner’s office couldn’t daughter dead death of 30-year-old death row decedent December died door driver drugs family members February February 14 friends Gary Erickson going Golden Gate Bridge Helzer Holmes knew Holmes learned Holmes says Holmes’s homicide inmates January Jeff Levine Jindrich July jumped June Ken Holmes killed later lived looked male March Marin City Marin County Marin Independent Journal Marlene mortuary mother murder named natural death Novato November October parents person police officers prison Riley Sammie Sammie’s San Francisco San Quentin San Rafael scene September shot Slaying someone suicide Tabitha Tammy’s there’s thing Thomas Tiburon Tindel told Holmes took undetermined death wasn’t wife woman