The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department, Pulaski County Coroner’s Office and state officials continue to investigate a fatal house fire that occurred at a home in the 5,000 E. block of 250 S. in Kewanna last week.
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The Pulaski County Council has reversed course on a salary change for a staff member in the Prosecutor’s Office. Last month, the council voted to tie the victim’s assistance coordinator’s pay rate to the level specified by the grant that funds the position, with Ken Boswell and Scott Hinkle opposing. But when it came time to update the salary matrix to reflect the change last week, council members Rudy DeSabatine and Jay Sullivan joined Boswell and Hinkle in opposition, denying the measure by a vote of four-to-three.
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Now that Pulaski County Chief Deputy Coroner Jon Frain has finally gotten his pay raise, county officials now have to figure out where the money is going to come from. Last month, the county council voted to pay the chief deputy 82 percent of the coroner’s salary, which more than quadrupled Frain’s pay rate to almost $8,100 a year. While the Coroner’s Office had about $8,000 budgeted for that purpose in previous years, that figure had been cut to match Frain’s previous pay rate.
Continue readingThe Pulaski County Council will consider several departments’ requests for additional help tonight. Prosecutor Dan Murphy has been asking for another full-time secretary, citing a significant increase in the number of cases being filed, along with the addition of new court programs. A vote on the matter ended in a three-to-three tie last month. Council President Jay Sullivan asked the county commissioners to weigh in, but they sent it back to the council without making a formal recommendation.
Continue readingAfter months of work, the Pulaski County coroner’s new morgue and office space is fully up and running. Coroner John Behny gave an update to the county council and commissioners last week, saying the facility is proving to be a good thing. “I just scratch my head. That place is amazing,” he said. “From what we started with just a few weeks ago to now, we’re tickled to death, just tickled to death. So is everybody else that has to come in there.”
Continue readingThe Pulaski County Council has finalized a significant pay raise for Chief Deputy Coroner Jon Frain, but not without some opposition. Council members approved a pair of wage revisions Monday.
Continue readingAfter months of discussions, the Pulaski County Council has finally agreed to give the chief deputy coroner a pay raise. Council members voted six-to-one Monday to pay the chief deputy coroner 82 percent of what the coroner makes. That will amount to almost $8,100 a year, which is more than four times the current pay level. Mike Tiede cast the lone opposing vote.
Continue readingThe new space for the Pulaski County Coroner’s Office is almost complete. Maintenance Director Jeff Johnston told the county commissioners Monday that he was looking to move the morgue into the West Annex by the end of this week.
Continue readingA Winamac man is dead, following a crash on U.S. 421 near Francesville Tuesday afternoon. The Pulaski County Coroner’s Office says it happened near County Road 600 South. Ronald Mark Vititoe, 72, was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:20 p.m. by Coroner John Behny.
Continue readingThe Pulaski County Council still isn’t ready to give the county’s chief deputy coroner a pay raise. Jon Frain has apparently been getting less than $150 per month for the job, even though more than four times that amount has been available in the coroner’s budget.
The former Winamac Masonic Lodge officially has a new name. The Pulaski County Commissioners voted Monday to name the building the “West Annex.” The county bought the building back in June. It will house the Coroner’s Office and Emergency Management Agency.
Pulaski County Chief Deputy Coroner Jon Frain is apparently back on the job, after resigning amid a wage dispute. Coroner John Behny told the county commissioners Monday he rehired Frain, when the Coroner’s Office found itself short-staffed a couple weeks ago. “I was away for an autopsy, had to leave the county,” Behny explained. “We got another call. Fulton County assisted Mr. Frain. So we were grateful that he was there and was able to respond in a very timely manner. That helped EMS and first responders and our sheriff’s deputies.”
The Pulaski County Coroner’s Office is facing a staffing shortage, following the resignation of the chief deputy. Coroner John Behny told the county council last week that his lone deputy Jon Frain had “had enough.” “I not only lost my chief deputy,” he said. “I also lost a facility for which to check the bodies over and do our autopsies and so forth. I’ve lost all of that. I’ve lost storage of our files. I’ve actually gone backwards. I’ve gone from having an office. I got displaced. I have nothing. Our building isn’t going to be ready for some time.”
The conversion of the former Winamac Masonic Lodge into a county morgue and office building will be done by the end of October. Pulaski County Maintenance Supervisor Jeff Johnston told the county commissioners last Monday that the construction phase of the work should wrap up by the end of this week. “The cooler and all of that equipment will be installed as soon as that’s done,” he explained, “and then, we’ll start moving offices in.”
The Pulaski County Coroner’s Office has released the identity of the individual who was found at the scene of a house fire in rural Medaryville last month.
The Coroner’s Office identified the male victim as William O’Neil Toosley. The next of kin has been notified by the Chief Deputy Coroner. Continue reading
The Pulaski Coroner’s Office released information Sunday afternoon from the autopsy and a toxicology test performed on a victim found in a house fire in Medaryville.
The man suspected of his involvement in a fatal house fire in Medaryville in the afternoon on Monday, Aug. 13 has been charged in the incident.
Pulaski County crews continue preparing the former Winamac Masonic Lodge for use as a county morgue and office building. The county commissioners got an update Monday from Maintenance Supervisor Jeff Johnston.
The Pulaski County Coroner’s Office’s new fees have been approved by the county council. Under the new arrangement, any additional copies of the coroner’s verdict, coroner’s report, and autopsy report will now cost $25 for the three-document package. A $25 disposition permit will also be charged before bodies may be released for cremation.
A house fire in rural Medaryville has claimed a life. The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office says it happened Monday afternoon around 2:30, in the 9000 block of County Road 300 North. When Medaryville firefighters arrived, they reportedly found a deceased victim inside the home. The victim’s name has not yet been released. The Sheriff’s Office is helping with the investigation.
