The chesterfield county coroners office is a small office in northeast south carolina, staffed by a coroner, chief deputy coroner and four deputy coroners

The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded $100,000 to Chesterfield County on October 1, 2025, under the Strengthening the Medical Examiner-Coroner System program (CFDA 16.037). The award funds the Chesterfield County Coroner's Office to pursue professional accreditation and upgrade medicolegal death investigation capabilities over a three-year period through September 30, 2028. The coroner's office, staffed by a coroner, chief deputy coroner, and four deputy coroners, will use funding to strengthen policies and procedures, bring its facility to accreditation standards, upgrade professional staffing practices aligned with accredited coroner offices, and obtain technical assistance and professional development. The office currently struggles with death investigation data quality and infrastructure, an incomplete facility, and uneven expertise levels among staff. Place of performance is Chesterfield, South Carolina. The 36-month award period runs from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2028.

The chesterfield county coroners office is in dire need of updated facilities, procedures, and professional advice to become accredited and honestly to become better at what the chesterfield county coroners office does. The chesterfield county coroners office struggles with 1) death investigation data quality and infrastructure, 2) an incomplete facility, and 3) uneven expertise levels. As part of its 3-year plan, the chesterfield county coroners office would become accredited, while bringing the new facility to accreditation standards and become much more educated and proficient on every death investigation. In this 3-year plan, the chesterfield county coroners office first would seek accreditation by strengthening our policies and procedures as well as work to bring the new facility up to standard (no construction costs are sought in this grant as this building is existing). Second, the chesterfield county coroners office would staff the new facility in a professional manner, akin to other accredited coroners offices. Lastly, the chesterfield county coroners office would maintain accreditation so the chesterfield county coroners office would be a worthy investment and could be eligible for new funding.