Problem-plagued county morgue gets new oversight

EVERETT — Snohomish County has hired a police supervisor with a strong forensics resume to continue reforms at the Medical Examiner’s Office.

Dan Christman, a sergeant with the Bothell police department, is scheduled to begin his new county job Tuesday. One of Christman’s first tasks will be restructuring the morgue, where management problems played into a half-million-dollar settlement the county reached last year with a former death investigator. A similar lawsuit brought by a different female investigator still is pending.

The office weathered criticism in the recent past over the handling of autopsies and a child-death investigation in Monroe.

Christman is “very well regarded in our law enforcement community,” Deputy County Executive Mark Ericks said. “Many, many law enforcement officials in our county and around the state know Dan Christman, and if they don’t know him personally, they know his reputation.”

The office has 14 employees and a budget of a little more than $2.2 million.

Christman will assume the title of deputy director. He’ll be taking over for Dennis Peterson, a retired police chief Ericks contracted in February to shore up the county morgue’s administration. He also was hired to recommend long-term improvements.

Peterson’s tenure began just weeks before the March 22 Oso mudslide. Medical examiner’s staff worked long hours to identify the 43 victims and received praise from many family members for their professionalism and sensitivity.

Christman’s salary will be similar to the $10,000 per month Peterson was earning, Ericks said.

“His job will be to take the talented staff we have there now and help them meet their goals,” Ericks said.

Ericks, a former Bothell police chief, hired Christman at that department about 15 years ago. Christman also has worked as a medical death investigator in Idaho and Washington, including for years at the Medical Examiner’s Office he will now help lead. He’s developed expertise in blood-spatter patterns and runs a forensics consulting business. He’s also a forensics instructor at the state’s police training academy.

Since 1998, the county morgue has been under the management of Dr. Norman Thiersch, a forensic pathologist.

County code specifies that the county executive must hire a physician certified in forensic pathology to run the morgue.

That code was drafted when the county switched from a system with an elected coroner, who need not be a doctor or forensic expert, to a medical examiner’s system run by a forensic pathologist, Ericks said. Part of Christman’s job will be making recommendations about reforming that structure, and possibly dividing up the administrative and scientific components of the office. Some offices around the country use a hybrid system.

Personnel problems during Thiersch’s tenure include a high turnover among death investigators. Two recent lawsuits about workplace conditions named him as a defendant, including one the county settled with a former death investigator a year ago for $495,000. That suit centered on claims of workplace retaliation against a female employee. It accused Thiersch and the county of subjecting her to sexual harassment, a hostile work environment and failing to accommodate a disability.

In December, another female investigator from the office sued the county and Thiersch over similar allegations of gender discrimination and retaliation. The new lawsuit describes a gruesome autopsy scene, nearly identical to one in the previous lawsuit, in which Thiersch is accused of pulling “the heart and lungs from a cadaver so as to splatter blood on plaintiff’s face.”

The plaintiff, Deborah Hollis, is being represented by the same Seattle attorney who handled the earlier case. A damage claim filed before Hollis’ suit sought $750,000 in damages.

Other problems predate the lawsuits.

In 2012, Monroe Police detectives questioned why a pathologist who reports to Thiersch declined to perform an autopsy on a 7-year-old boy who died of an apparent overdose of aspirin or similar medication. A criminal investigation focused on the parents. It never led to charges in part because of a lack of potential evidence from an autopsy, records show.

In 2010, at the insistence of the County Council, a consultant was hired to look into management, employee morale and workplace behavior at the morgue. Staff for Aaron Reardon, then county executive, had earlier submitted a report suggesting there was little room for improvement.

Since becoming county executive last year, John Lovick’s office has taken a more hands-on approach to changing how the office is managed.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Family searches for answers in 1982 Gold Bar cold case murder

David DeDesrochers’ children spent years searching for him before learning he’d been murdered. Now, they want answers.

A SoundTransit Link train pulls into the Mountlake Terrace station as U.S. Representative Rick Larsen talks about the T&I Committee’s work on the surface reauthorization bill on Wednesday, April 16, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Larsen talks federal funding for Snohomish County transit projects

U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Everett) spoke with Snohomish County leaders to hear their priorities for an upcoming transit bill.

Irene Pfister, left, holds a sign reading “Justice for Jonathan” next to another protester with a sign that says “Major Crimes Needs to Investigate,” during a call to action Saturday, April 12, 2025, in Arlington. (Aspen Anderson / The Herald)
Arlington community rallies, a family waits for news on missing man

Family and neighbors say more can be done in the search for Jonathan Hoang. The sheriff’s office says all leads are being pursued.

Mary Ann Karber, 101, spins the wheel during Wheel of Forunte at Washington Oakes on Tuesday, April 1, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lunch and Wheel of Fortune with some Everett swinging seniors

She’s 101 and he’s 76. At Washington Oakes, fun and friendship are on the menu.

Northshore School District Administrative building. (Northshore School District)
Lawsuit against Northshore School District reaches $500,000 settlement

A family alleged a teacher repeatedly restrained and isolated their child and barred them from observing the classroom.

Jury awards $3.25M in dog bite verdict against Mountlake Terrace

Mountlake Terrace dog was euthanized after 2022 incident involving fellow officer.

Everett City Council on Wednesday, March 19 in Everett, Washington. (Will Geschke / The Herald)
Everett council to vote on budget amendment

The amendment sets aside dollars for new employees in some areas, makes spending cuts in others and allocates money for work on the city’s stadium project.

Bryson Fico, left, unloaded box of books from his car with the help of Custody Officer Jason Morton as a donation to the Marysville Jail on Saturday, April 5, 2025 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Books behind bars: A personal mission for change

Bryson Fico’s project provides inmates with tools for escape, learning and second chances.

Protesters line Broadway in Everett for Main Street USA rally

Thousands turn out to protest President Trump on Saturday in Everett, joining hundreds of other towns and cities.

Signs in support of and opposition of the Proposition 1 annexation into RFA are visible along 100th Avenue West on Thursday, April 3, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Voting underway in Edmonds RFA special election

Edmonds residents have until April 22 to send in their ballots to decide if the city will annex into South County Fire.

LifeWise local co-directors Darcie Hammer and Sarah Sweeny talk about what a typical classroom routine looks like on Monday, April 14, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett off-campus Bible program draws mixed reaction from parents

The weekly optional program, LifeWise Academy, takes children out of public school during the day for religious lessons.

An EcoRemedy employee checks a control panel of their equipment at the Edmonds Wastewater Treatment Plant on Thursday, April 17, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Edmonds launches technology to destroy PFAS

Edmonds is the first city in the country to implement… Continue reading

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.