County Coroner
Paul Searby
P.O. Box 243
Pinckneyville, IL 62274
Phone: 618-542-2044
Fax: 618-542-3819
perrycountycoroner@yahoo.com
Department Functions
Perry county coroner is elected, who investigate deaths that are sudden, unexpected, violent, suspicious, or occurred without a doctor in attendance. They are legally empowered as conservators of the peace with the same powers as a county Sheriff. The coroner’s office has one full time employee and 4 part time employees. The total operating budget of the office is $93,275 from the general fund. Details of this budget can be found HERE.
Key Functions & Responsibilities
- Death Investigation: Responding to scenes of unnatural or unexplained death, securing property, and conducting forensic analyses.
- Determining Cause and Manner: Identifying why and how a person died (e.g., homicide, suicide, accident, natural, or undetermined) to issue official death certificates.
- Conducting Inquests: Convening coroner’s juries to hear testimony and review evidence for suspicious or obscure deaths.
- Autopsies: Ordering and directing post-mortem examinations, which are typically performed by contracted forensic pathologists.
- Freedom of Information Act Requests can be submitted to the Perry County Office of FOIA at foia@perrycountyil.gov or mailed to 3764 State Route 13-127, Pinckneyville, IL 62274 or click the FOIA tab on the website.