Scattered death data, missing records in Texas justice of the peace investigation

AUSTIN (KXAN) –  “Should the decision to call for an investigation in the cause of an unnatural death be placed in the hands of a public official or in those of a person who is trained in the medical profession?”

In 1963, the Odessa American published that “hotly disputed” question in Texas about whether a justice of the peace should have authority to determine the causes of “unnatural” or “questionable” deaths. Most of Texas’ 254 counties still use the elected role in death inquests instead of medical examiners ...