PUEBLO, Colo. (KOAA) — When Davis Mortuary was shuttered, and Pueblo County Coroner Brian Cotter resigned from the office, six people applied to fill the position.
- Watch News5's coverage of the Davis Mortuary investigation below:
Only one of them was qualified under state law.
That was Cotter’s deputy coroner, who was omitted from the search due to his close working relationship with Cotter. This forced Pueblo County Commissioners to appoint an individual who was not qualified under state law.
This dilemma has prompted state lawmakers to try to create more accessibility to the position in smaller counties, but it has some concerned about the quality of candidates that might step forward.
Greg Grahek has been Pueblo County's interim coroner since the resignation of Cotter in September. He is currently seeking a formal election into the role.
- Watch Grahek's swearing in below:
Grahek said he was upset when he learned the state legislature is trying to pass a bill that he says would lower the standards required to become a coroner in the county.
"I see the need to have a pool of people to elect for him, but you need to make it such that there are some baseline qualifications," said Grahek.
The bill is meant to improve transparency by requiring a coroner to post on their official website written disclosures of their financial interests, if they have any, such as owning a mortuary or funeral home.
However, tucked below in the qualifications, an amendment changes the population threshold for mandatory professional accreditations.
The amendment states a person is eligible to hold the office of coroner if they are a death investigator certified by the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators or a forensic pathologist certified by the American Board of Pathology, but it raises the county population requirement for this rule from 150,000 to 300,000.
These professional accreditations would no longer apply to the role in Pueblo County if the bill passes.
Representative Tisha Mauro cites a lack of qualified individuals.
"We're raising the population to 300,000 before you qualify because counties at 300,000 or more have an abundance of that threshold that can run for office," said Rep. Mauro.
"I think that would be a good argument if it were actually a smaller county, but Pueblo is not a smaller county," says Steph Vigil, a former House representative, and the architect of the 150,000 threshold. "This wasn't like Steph Vigil came up with a number and said, figure it out. This was negotiated and discussed with the county coroners, specifically. This is their number. So, you know... it seems a little odd to me."
Grahek said he could support the adjustment to the bill with some changes.
"It's the minimum requirement to be elected. If you get elected, then within six months, you have to be certified," said Grahek.
Notably, Grahek was not certified upon accepting the interim coroner position, but became so within months.
A shared statement from the bill's primary sponsor defended the amendment.
"At its core, this amendment is about preserving democracy at the county level. Communities deserve more than one viable candidate when selecting someone for such an important role," said the sponsor.
But Grahek believes the change comes at a cost.
"It's been a hard seven months to start clawing back and gaining that trust and integrity and transparency to the office. So, we're going to lighten the laws? That actually makes no sense," said Grahek.
Beyond qualifications, Grahek is also concerned about how the legislation, specifically HB 26105, impacts transparency regarding financial conflicts of interest.
While the bill requires a coroner to post written disclosures of financial interests on their official website, Grahek argues it strips away deeper reporting requirements.
"Now, you still, under the new bill, would have to disclose that you have some relationship, but you don't have to disclose how many referrals did your family business get, how many referrals did you give to X mortuary," said Grahek. "What was that income? What was that dollar figure? And so then we just go, it seems shady.”
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