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Coroners Fear Autopsy Backlog as GBI Loses Medical Examiner

Georgia Bureau of Investigation

Some coroners are warning that autopsies could take longer as the Georgia Bureau of Investigation loses one of its medical examiners. The GBI has announced that its crime lab in Macon will stop performing autopsies for an indefinite period of time starting Oct. 1.

The GBI said the medical examiner based in Macon is retiring and a replacement hasn't been hired. News outlets report nearly one-third of Georgia's 159 counties relied on the Macon crime lab to conduct autopsies in deaths deemed suspicious or unusual. Now that workload will be divided between medical examiners in metro Atlanta and the Savannah area. Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler says longer wait times for autopsies will mean delayed funerals for loved ones back home.