Pending death investigations hold up survivors’ benefits

State medical examiner has more than 800 cases yet to get official ruling

BY ZIVA BRANSTETTER AND CASEY SMITH - Tulsa World | Published: August 6, 2012

More than 800 death investigations are pending with the State Medical Examiner’s Office, some more than a year old, hampering police investigations and depriving survivors of life insurance payments and other benefits, a Tulsa World investigation has found.

photo - Kathy O’Connell poses with medals her late husband, Larry O’Connell, was awarded for his actions in the Vietnam War. Photo by MIKE SIMONS, TULSA WORLD

Kathy O’Connell poses with medals her late husband, Larry O’Connell, was awarded for his actions in the Vietnam War. Photo by MIKE SIMONS, TULSA WORLD

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The agency is working to eliminate the backlog of cases in which a death certificate has not been finalized, said Chief Medical Examiner Eric Pfeifer. The agency just hired a new pathologist for...
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