County Coroner Pushes Again For Access To Morgue Contract With Holy Family Investigated, But Prosecutor Says It Passes Muster

Spokane County commissioners are investigating their contract with Holy Family Hospital to see whether it violates state laws prohibiting gifts of public money.

That decision came after county Coroner Dexter Amend, making a rare public appearance Thursday, renewed his complaint about being denied access to the county morgue, based at the North Side hospital.

Amend orders autopsies but doesn’t perform them. Forensic pathologist Dr. George Lindholm of Pathology Associates performs most autopsies ordered by the coroner.

Still, Amend wants office space at the morgue.

“We’re not using it,” Amend said. “We have never been allowed to be in there.”

Amend’s fight to get into the morgue stretches back more than a year to right after he took office in 1995. Officials at Holy Family and Pathology Associates, which operates the morgue, repeatedly have denied Amend access.

Amend, a retired urologist, is no stranger to conflict and controversy. He has been accused of making inappropriate comments to grieving families and not ordering enough autopsies. The state Medical Quality Assurance Commission plans to hold a hearing next month on whether to revoke Amend’s medical license over charges of unprofessional conduct.

On Thursday, Amend told commissioners that taxpayers are paying to rent the morgue and its equipment from Holy Family. He complained that those offices have been turned over to Pathology Associates, a private company.

Commissioner Phil Harris asked for an investigation into the agreement, signed in March 1993.

“If a privately owned company is using property rented by the county and we’re not recuperated, we’re in violation of the gifting laws of the state of Washington,” Harris said.

But the property isn’t being rented by the county, said Ron Schurra, president of Holy Family. Taxpayers are repaying a 10-year $406,498 loan assumed by the hospital to revamp the morgue and purchase state-of-the-art equipment. After the loan is paid off, the county won’t have to pay.

Jim Emacio, a county deputy prosecutor, said the agreement doesn’t violate any laws. He said he would look into whether the agreement is being followed properly and whether Amend should have morgue access.

“I agree that we do have the right to have offices there,” Emacio said.

Hospital officials say the morgue is in the heart of the hospital and not an appropriate place to conduct county business. They also say there isn’t an inch of room to spare. Moving in Amend would mean moving out someone else, Schurra said.

The meeting between commissioners and Amend was called to consider the coroner’s proposal to boost fees paid by other counties for use of the morgue from $100 to $300 per autopsy.

Politicians and coroners from counties such as Ferry and Pend Oreille in Washington and Kootenai, Boundary and Bonner in Idaho have written Amend complaining about the proposed rate hike.

Amend said the fees should be raised to reduce Spokane County’s morgue-operating costs.

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