coroner

A political position at the state level responsible for investigating violent or strange deaths and homicides. In the U.S., this position can be held by a sheriff, a justice of the peace, or a medical examiner. Medical experience can be useful in this position, but about half of the states in the U.S. do not require that their coroners have medical experience in order to get appointed into the position. If the coroner does not have pathology, toxicology, or medical experience, then physicians perform the autopsies.