PUEBLO COUNTY — Pueblo County Coroner Brian Cotter is currently under investigation for improperly storing bodies inside his private business, a mortuary.
News5Investigates found funeral home employees are not barred from running or holding the Coroner’s office, but there are few currently holding the position in the state.
He co-owns Davis Mortuary with his brother, and reports from state investigators showed the coroner admitted that some remains had been in the building for 15 years. The coroner also admitted to giving families fake cremains.
In Colorado’s 64 counties, News5Investigates found eight, including Pueblo County, that have a coroner who also runs or works for a funeral home in the local area.
While Colorado law does not ban funeral home industry workers from holding the office, state law does say it is a conflict of interest. The conflict of interest means the coroner cannot suggest using their business for county business while in office. However, state law also says the conflict of interest does not apply “if an emergency situation exists and the coroner acts in good faith to prevent a health hazard”.
Most coroners working in counties with smaller populations had experience as a deputy coroner before running for office, other common experience listed was for jobs in healthcare and law enforcement.
In larger counties, with populations of more than 150,000, coroners were either Forensic Pathologists or Certified Death Investigators with the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators (ABMDI). In 2024, state law changed to require candidates running for coroner in these larger counties to have one of those qualifications. The law went into effect in November 2024, which for most counties will apply to the November 2026 election.
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