'Antiquated' System Leaves NE Autopsies Up To County Attorneys

Thousands of Nebraskans who died outside of a doctor’s care last year did not receive an autopsy. In Nebraska, when an attending medical professional doesn’t declare a cause of death, the task always falls to the local county attorney, a lawyer primarily responsible for prosecuting accused criminals. Their training, access to resources and approaches to the job vary widely. It’s a system that remains in place despite experts and some local prosecutors publicly decrying it as “antiquated” in 2008. A Flatwater Free Press analysis of mortality data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that since then, the statewide unattended autopsy rate has dropped by about half.