Beaufort County Coroner held a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday September 6 for the new $437,000 forensic pathology suite that was funding as a part of the County’s FY23 Budget.

“This new suite will give our family closure in hours instead of days and weeks. It will provide our police officers with critical clues and advantages to bringing justice for victims' families,” said Council Member Alice Howard – District 4. “It will help our community navigate the tragedy and aftermath of losing a loved one.”

The addition of these services will cut down the waiting process to 12 - 36 hours for the autopsy and provide answers on the cause of death in 48 hours, barring the need for tissue or toxicology-related specimen processing.

“The citizens of Beaufort County deserve the best service they can get from the Coroner's Office," said David Ott, Beaufort County Coroner. "As we help citizens through the worst days of their lives, they need to know that we are doing everything to help them in the most expeditious manner possible."

District 124 Rep. Shannon Erickson added “This brings a true sense of community to a very difficult time in people’s lives.”

Ott and his staff purchased the necessary equipment and was able to recruit Joni Skipper to be the Beaufort County Forensic Pathologist. Skipper received her medical degree from the University of South Carolina School of Medicine and most recently was a Forensic Pathologist/Associate Medical Examiner at Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).

“We are proud to be a part of this team and look forward to working with all of you,” said Dr. Joni Skipper, a forensic pathologist in Beaufort County. “I do want to emphasize our availability to the families and to our local law enforcement agencies,”

Autopsies had been performed at MUSC in Charleston and took four or five days from the date of death and have taken up to seven or eight days. Results sometimes could have taken up to 12 weeks leaving family questions lingering and delaying critical clues that law enforcement needs

“Really this is about the human factor and allowing us to close quicker with the families,” Port Royal Mayor Joe DeVito said.

Ott anticipates surrounding counties paying to use the department about 50 times a year with the same benefits of shorter autopsy times and benefits to law enforcement.  Add this to the Beaufort County average of 190 autopsies per year and it will save taxpayers money overall.