Coroner and EMS report: overdose responses fall; county to consider expanding NET-device funding

Coroner Mark Sutton briefed the Scott County Physical Court on the coroners offices responsibilities, investigative steps and criteria for sending cases to the state medical examiner in Frankfort for full autopsy.

Sutton said "total investigations" begin with the initial dispatch and on-scene review with EMS; when a decedent lacks a clear health history or there are unanswered circumstances, the coroners office will request a full autopsy in Frankfort. Of 117 deaths the coroner cited from the previous year, Sutton said 28 were sent to Frankfort for full autopsy; the office also performed 11 local toxicology blood draws. He described typical case-processing time as 46 hours for routine cases and noted some complex cases can require many hours or weeks of follow-up to locate next of kin.

On overdose response, EMS/recovery staff (including Brandon, identified in the meeting as a recovery/outreach responder who follows up on overdoses) said county-run counts differ from some state extracts because of how dispatch software codes calls. They reported a decline in local overdose responses from roughly 203 (2023) to 72 (2024) and 54 (2025).

Brandon and Georgetown Police Department staff also described Narcan (naloxone) distribution: the county has seven public Narcan boxes in place, intends to add about 10 more, and a local contact responsible for the boxes averages about 100 Narcan doses monthly to restock those boxes. Presenters tied more available naloxone, recovery-team follow-up (aiming for contact within 72 hours of an overdose) and local interdiction and treatment referrals to the downward trend in overdoses.

The court was told a proposed amendment to the countys NET-device purchase agreement would increase participants supported from 74 to 94 and that the judge indicated the additional cost would total $70,000; he said $386,000 remains in the countys opioid settlement fund and placed that amendment for formal consideration at the next Friday meeting. No vote on the NET amendment was taken at this session.

Court members also raised administrative items (cremation authorization, deputy on-call rotations) and facility maintenance needs for the coroners office.