A DANGEROUS MESS. NEXT DOOR AT SIX. FIND OUT WHY THE CITY SAYS ITS HANDS ARE TIED WHEN IT COMES
TO SOLVING THIS I DO HAVE TO ASK
ABOUT THE RECORD KEEPING. WE
EXPOSE THE MISTAKES IN THE
MORGUE. WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GET
THE REFRIGERATION FIX? NOW
THERE’S NEW LEADERSHIP. THERE’S
A LOT WRONG. THERE’S A LOT TO
FIX. WHY TAKE THAT ON AND WE’RE
ASKING THE QUESTIONS YOU WANT
ANSWERED. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO
BE ABLE TO FILL THOSE POSITIONS?
YES, I KNOW CAMERAS TONIGHT WERE
ALLOWED INSIDE THE WAYNE COUNTY
MORGUE. IT’S BEEN A YEAR LONG
INVESTIGATION, EXPOSING POOR
RECORDKEEPING. DECOMPOSING
BODIES DELAYS IN CONTACTING
FAMILIES OF THE DEAD REALLY HAS
BEEN A MESS AND BECAUSE THERE
ARE REPORTING THE MEDICAL
EXAMINER OUT OF A JOB, YOU HAVE
A MEDICINE NO LONGER HAS THE
CONTRACT FOR THE MORGUE. SO
TONIGHT I SIT DOWN WITH THE NEW
LEADERSHIP. WAYNE STATE
UNIVERSITY MEDICINE, ASKING THE
QUESTIONS THAT YOU WANT ANSWERED
. AND FOR THE FIRST TIME I GO
INSIDE THE MORGUE WITH CAMERAS
ROLLING. HONESTLY I NEVER
THOUGHT THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN
. IT’S WONDERFUL TO MEET YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR LETTING
US COME VISIT BEING WELCOMED
INSIDE THE WING COUNTY MEDICAL
EXAMINER’S OFFICE. YES, AND NO
CAMERAS. SO HOW DID THIS HAPPEN
? WELL, IT CAME OUT OF THIS
INTERVIEW. YOU WILL SEE THE
DIFFERENCE SO THAT YOU CAN COME
BACK AND REPORT ON THOSE
POSITIVE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE
SEEN, LIKE TO VISIT LIKE TO HAVE
YOU THERE THAT’S BELIEVED TO
JORDAN’S. SHE IS THE DIRECTOR OF
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, HUMAN
AND VETERAN SERVICES FOR WAYNE
COUNTY. HOW’S THE WING COUNTY
MORE GOING TO BE DIFFERENT? TWO
FAMILIES WE’RE TALKING NOW,
ADDING THE SOCIAL SERVICE
SERVICES COMPONENT TO THIS.
SOCIAL SERVICE COULD HAVE HELPED
THESE FAMILIES WE TALKED TO OVER
THE PAST YEAR SHE’S MISSING. I
DON’T KNOW WHERE SHE IS. SHE HAD
MAGGOTS IN HER MOM. WHO DOES
THAT, LIKE THEY’RE PEOPLE.
PEOPLE DESERVE TO BE LAID TO
REST STORY THAT’S UNIQUE TO ME
TO US. YOU CAN’T KEEP ON DOING
THE WRONG THING AND GETTING AWAY
WITH IT. TO CORRECT THE ISSUES
WE UNCOVERED. WAYNE STATE
UNIVERSITY MEDICINE IS NOW
TAKING OVER THE WAYNE COUNTY
MORGUE WITH A FIVE YEARS $70
MILLION CONTRACT. AND THIS IS
WHERE YOU DO AUTOPSIES. THIS IS
THE AUTOPSY ROOM. TYPICALLY 6 TO
8 ARE DONE A DAY THE ISSUE.
THERE’S A BACKLOG OF BODIES AT
TIMES, NOT ENOUGH PATHOLOGISTS
TO DO THE WORK. I SAT DOWN WITH
DEAN WHILE SACKER TO FIND OUT
HOW HE PLANS TO FIX THE MORGUE
MESS COUNTY MEDICAL EXAMINER’S
OFFICE. IS NOT ACCREDITED. AND
THAT IS, IN PART BECAUSE OF THE
SHORTAGE OF MEDICAL EXAMINERS.
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO FIX THAT?
IN IN A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT
WAYS. ONE IS WE’RE LAUNCHING A
VERY AGGRESSIVE. RECRUITMENT
CAMPAIGN. I DO HAVE TO ASK ABOUT
THE RECORD KEEPING SO MANY
FAMILIES CAME TO US, COMPLAINING
THAT THEY WOULD CALL LOOKING FOR
THEIR LOVED ONE AND THE
MORTGAGES DIDN’T KEEP GOOD
RECORDS. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO
FIX THAT? WE ARE GOING TO FIX
THAT THROUGH OUR SOFTWARE OF THE
DATA MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTING THE
MOST CURRENT MODERN VERSION OF
IT BY THE END OF THIS MONTH, AND
THIS IS WHERE INVESTIGATORS WORK
OUT OF MY ASSISTANT IN A RARE
AND SURPRISING MOVE, THE NEW
LEADERSHIP ALLOWED OUR CAMERAS
INSIDE THE MEDICAL EXAMINER’S
OFFICE. THIS IS OUR PHOTO LAB
RIGHT HERE. WE WANTED TO SEE FOR
OURSELVES THE CONDITION OF THIS
BUILDING THAT A RECENT AUDIT
SHOWED WAS IN DISREPAIR. ONE OF
THE ISSUES THAT WE EXPOSED
DURING THE REPORTS WERE BODIES
THAT WERE DECOMPOSING AT A LEVEL
THAT SEEMED TO BE BEYOND THE
USUAL STANDARDS. SO WE WERE ABLE
TO GET INSIDE THE MORGUE. THIS
IS ONE OF THE FOUR REFRIGERATOR
SYSTEMS AND THE QUESTION THAT WE
ASKED, IS WHAT’S BEING DONE, SO
THIS DOESN’T HAPPEN AGAIN. AT
THE END OF THESE 90 DAYS, WE’RE
TALKING EARLY JANUARY, WE WILL
HAVE A STAND AND LOOK ON HOW
WELL WE HAVE PROGRESSED. THERE’S
A LOT WRONG. THERE’S A LOT TO
FIX. WHY TAKE THAT ON? BEYOND
JUST AUTOPSIES, TOXICOLOGY AND
HISTOLOGY, BUT HOW CAN WE
IMPROVE THE HEALTH OF THE PEOPLE
IN WAYNE COUNTY? WE CAN DO THAT
THROUGH THE MEDICAL EXAMINER’S
OFFICE THERE. THERE IS DATA THAT
WE CAN UTILIZE TO REALLY HELP
FROM A POPULATION HEALTH
PERSPECTIVE. HOW DID SO MANY
MISTAKES AND PROBLEMS HAPPEN
UNDER THE COUNTY’S WATCH? I
CAN’T GIVE YOU ALL OF THE
HISTORICAL ISSUES, BUT THE
COUNTY HAS COMMITTED NOW TO
ACTUALLY PROVIDING THE NECESSARY
REBUILDING. REMODELING AND THE
RENOVATIONS THAT’S NEEDED AND WE
HAVE BEGUN TO DO THAT. I JUST
WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE WORK
THAT YOU’RE DOING THAT YOU WILL
CONTINUE TO DO TO KEEP THE
PUBLIC APPRISED OF WHAT WE’RE
DOING. BY THE WAY, THEY ARE ALSO
WORKING ON IMPROVING THE DEATH
AND CREMATION PERMIT PROCEDURES
ARE REPORTED ON THAT ISSUE. I DO
HAVE TO SAY WELL, IT’S NOT
FIXED. IT IS BETTER THAN IT WAS
UNDER THE OLD LEADERSHIP, SO