A concurrent RESOLUTION

 

TO RECOGNIZE THE WEEK OF JANUARY 19 THROUGH JANUARY 25, 2025, AS NATIONAL MEDICOLEGAL DEATH INVESTIGATION PROFESSIONALS WEEK IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA IN HONOR OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA CORONERS' ASSOCIATION AND THE CORONERS, DEPUTY CORONERS, AND MEDICOLEGAL DEATH INVESTIGATION PROFESSIONALS WHO SERVE OUR CITIZENS EVERY DAY.

 

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina General Assembly are proud to honor the medicolegal death investigation professionals during the week of January 19 through January 25, 2025; and

 

Whereas, forty-six elected coroners and nearly three hundred deputy coroners, medicolegal death investigators (MDI's), and other professionals provide vital services in South Carolina. They are the cornerstone of medicolegal death investigations.  They are professionals who represent decedents, their families, and their communities to ensure that suspicious, violent, unattended, unexplained, and unexpected deaths that occur in their jurisdictions are investigated; and

 

Whereas, coroners, deputy coroners, and MDI professionals meet the needs of the criminal justice system, the public health system, and the emergency management system, as they serve in an ever-changing profession which impacts the American population in a wide range of settings; and

 

Whereas, the South Carolina Coroners' Association is the voice for coroners and their teams in this State. The association is working to ensure every citizen is represented by a qualified and experienced medicolegal death investigator to provide knowledgeable, comprehensive, and compassionate investigations into the deaths of our citizens and visitors. South Carolina and the nation rely on the increasing provision of accurate statistics and information which impacts prevention initiatives, in such times as during the opioid epidemic; and

 

Whereas, the South Carolina Coroners' Association aims to attain the highest quality medicolegal death investigation standards which are consistent with national standards; and

 

Whereas, with a renewed emphasis on ethical, qualified, independent, and thorough death investigations, medicolegal death investigators speak for those who can no longer speak for themselves and have demonstrated that they are an indispensable component of the public health, criminal justice, and emergency management systems as they respond to acts of violence; public health threats, such as COVID-19 and the opioid epidemic; and mass fatalities, such as those caused by Hurricane Helene. Now, therefore,

 

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

 

That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, recognize the week of January 19 through January 25, 2025, as National Medicolegal Death Investigation Professionals Week in the State of South Carolina in honor of the South Carolina Coroners' Association and the coroners, deputy coroners, and medicolegal death investigation professionals who serve our citizens every day.

 

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to the South Carolina Coroners' Association.

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