Coroner did not do autopsy
I'm wondering if I can sue the coroner or if there is any action I can take against her... my son died suddenly and unexpectedly while at home alone in his bathtub. His body was held by the coroner's office for autopsy for 10 days. This happened in Lucas County, Ohio. I was told that one reason for the length of time it took for his body to be released was that the coroner was backed up and had a lot of bodies to autopsy because she had been out of town.
When his body was released, I was told the autopsy was completed, and that he died from Sudden Unexplained Death Syndrome, but the report would not be ready for weeks, because they had to wait for toxicology. Believing what I was told, I had his body cremated after viewing at the funeral home. It was a very difficult decision for me to make, but I knew I had to keep moving forward. I had fears and suspicions because I noticed that there were no marks on his head, indicating to me that his brain had not been examined, even though he had a brain tumor. I pushed that fear away, telling myself that they probably did X-rays or MRI on his head for the autopsy instead of cutting it open. Almost 2 months later I went to the coroner's office to pick up his autopsy report only to find out that no autopsy was done and his death was ruled "natural". At that time I asked if I could make an appointment to ask the coroner questions about his death. I was told yes, I could ask for an appointment for any day after noon.
His partner wanted to come with me so I wanted to wait till she could come to make the appointment, because now that we both know that no autopsy was done, we both have questions. I called on Tues. to make an appointment on any day this week and was told I didn't need to talk to the coroner because no autopsy was done. I told the person on the phone that I was aware of that and was very upset about it and THAT is why I have a lot of questions for the coroner. I was put on hold, then was given an appointment for June 29th. I'm so upset.
My oldest son died in an accident at work on my birthday in 2001, and though the cause of his death was obvious, a complete autopsy was done anyway. In 1982 my husband committed suicide and the cause of his death was obvious, but a full autopsy was done on his body too. Now my second son died mysteriously and no autopsy was done. I'm so disturbed about this. Of course, if I would have known no autopsy was actually done on my second son, I would not have had his body cremated. Because I did, though, now I will never know what actually killed him. How can I know that he didn't slip and fall, hitting his head and died because of that, or if he had a heart attack, or drowned, or if his brain tumor had pressed on a part of his brain that regulates vital functions, or some other cause of death??
Is there a way to file a complaint against the coroner? Was it legal to skip an autopsy? Why was an autopsy done on my husband and oldest son when the causes of their deaths were obvious if an autopsy is optional? I know that no matter what an autopsy would have showed, it would not change the fact that my son is dead. However, at least I wouldn't feel so lost about what actually killed him. How can the coroner come to a conclusion that the death was "natural" when she did not do an autopsy? Do I have a case against her? Who would I complain to and can I or should I file a law suit against her?