Changes at the top at troubled Volusia Co. M.E.'s office

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — There's a new person in charge of Volusia County’s troubled medical examiner’s office.

Starting Friday, Dr. Jon Thogmartin will be the county’s interim medical examiner.

Problems about the office came to light in a letter from former medical examiner Dr. Sara Zydowicz, who claimed the building was falling apart, there wasn't enough room to store the bodies and the risk for critical error was high.

Thogmartin said one way he plans to improve the office is to stop taking on extra work from Seminole County by October. He also said he wants to add a work schedule on the weekends.

Read more: Volusia County approves negotiating contract with potential new medical examiner

Volusia County sheriff Mike Chitwood is calling for an independent review from the state attorney general’s office.

“I think the whole thing stinks and I threw the B.S. flag when it first came out,” Chitwood said. “The attorney general of FDLE needs to bring an independent person in there – no contract, no nothing – go in there and do a head-to-toe study of the office. Flush out everything that’s wrong.”

Volusia County brought Thogmartin in last month to do a review of its facility after Zydowicz wrote a letter to the state about a backlog of 200 cases, not enough staff and the county recommending she store bodies at the jail and have inmates move the bodies around -- a claim the county denies.

Prior to coming to Volusia County, Thogmartin was the medical examiner for Pasco and Pinellas counties.

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Some questioned the fact that Thogmartin was offered the interim position right after he did his report, which said the medical examiner's office only needed some minor adjustments, but Thogmartin assured the County Council Tuesday that there was no quid pro quo involved.

Cox Media Group