From the Campaign
Writings from Derrill Fussell on the office, the law, and what the work of the Coroner demands of the person who holds it.
The 2026 budget closed a $19 million shortfall by cutting 51 positions, and the county still faces roughly $10 million going into 2027. But Washington law doesn’t shrink with a budget: accreditation must be maintained, and the state withholds 25% of autopsy reimbursement from offices that fall out of compliance. Cutting this office is one of the few reductions that can cost the county money instead of saving it.
Read the postAmerica has no national death investigation system — it has about 2,040 separate offices, only 17% of them accredited, and almost none with a forensic pathologist of their own. Here is what that shortage means for justice, what Washington’s ESHB 1326 changed, and where Skagit County’s accredited office actually stands.
Read the postThanks to the hard work of Skagit County residents, Derrill Fussell is officially headed to the November 3, 2026 General Election ballot for Skagit County Coroner. The write-in campaign didn’t just clear the 1% threshold required by state law — it captured nearly 7% of the vote, one of four write-in campaigns countywide to qualify this cycle.
Read the postBudget constraints plague coroner’s offices nationwide — but Skagit’s commissioners are cutting two positions from an already-stretched office, proposing to leave an elected coroner and a single deputy to cover 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. State law says this office is mandatory. The commissioners’ budget treats it as optional.
Read the postThe county eliminated two positions from an already-stretched Coroner’s Office while voting to put option money down on a discretionary $12.5 million land purchase. The question isn’t whether the county is broke — it’s what the county buys first when money is tight.
Read the postBetween 5,000 and 8,000 death investigators work across more than 2,000 offices nationwide, facing chronic underfunding, a severe forensic pathologist shortage, and wildly inconsistent standards. Only in the last several years has the federal government mounted a serious, coordinated effort to fix it.
Read the postHayley Thompson’s decade leading the Skagit County Coroner’s Office surfaced a national problem — underfunding, inconsistent standards, and a forensic pathologist shortage. Derrill Fussell believes it has to be part of any honest conversation about who leads this office next.
Read the postTheodore Roosevelt believed that government owed every citizen a fair shake — not a favor, not a handout, but an honest deal. That principle is older than any party platform, and it still applies to the Skagit County Coroner's office today.
Read the postWhen a death occurs, knowing what to do next is critical — not just for families, but for public safety, accurate record-keeping, and justice. A clear breakdown of Washington coroner jurisdiction under RCW 68.50.010.
Read the postEvery elected office in Skagit County carries a public duty that goes beyond its core function. Financial transparency and accountability are not optional extras — they are the baseline voters should expect from the Coroner's office and every other.
Read the postMost people never think about the Coroner's office until the hardest day of their lives. Here is what the job covers, what the overdose crisis means for Skagit County, and three concrete commitments.
Read the postMost people never think about the Coroner until the worst day of their life. Here is what the office is sworn to do — from identifying every person to serving as a check no one sees coming — and why it matters.
Read the postA platform is only as strong as the neighbors who carry it. Join the work.
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