MARSHALL COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — The Marshall County Coroner’s Office has released its first-ever annual report.
According to the report, the Marshall County Coroner’s Office serves a population of over 98,000 and is responsible for covering 566 square miles. The coroner does not investigate every death in the county, only ones that fall under certain guidelines.
The full report includes leading causes of death, death investigations by age, investigations by city, toxicology breakdowns for accidental deaths and more.
The coroner, who is the Chief Medicolegal Death Investigator and Clerk for the county, is responsible for investigating deaths in accordance with state law. The primary task of the coroner is to determine the “cause and manner of death” of those who died in the county or for those where the ‘traumatic event’ which may have caused their death originated in Marshall County.
The report listed the following as deaths a coroner may be called to investigate:
- Accidental Deaths
- Homicide Deaths
- Suicide Deaths
- Infant Deaths
- Deaths of any person under the age of 18.
- Deaths deemed sudden (less than 24 hours from onset of symptoms)
- Any other death where there is reasonable suspicion of foul play
These deaths may require a complete and full investigation, or may just require the coroner to be notified the death has occurred.
The coroner’s office reported that it has seen a rise in calls in general, but most calls are still for natural deaths.
Out of 258 deaths investigated by the coroner’s office investigated in 2022, 170 of them were ruled natural deaths. Accidental deaths were the next leading cause of death, as 58 were investigated by the coroner’s office. Just five deaths were ruled as ‘undetermined deaths’, meaning one manner of death wasn’t more compelling than another in those cases.
Six homicide deaths were reported in 2022. Homicide deaths are “classified based on mechanism of injury,” according to the coroner’s office.
Five of the six homicides were by gunshot wound, one was classified as a stabbing.
In the report, death investigations are also listed by city. Guntersville had the most death investigations of any city in Marshall County with 68 (34 happening inside city limits).
Albertville had the second most investigations, but the most inside city limits as 66 death were investigated in that area (37 within city limits).
To read more about the coroner’s duties within the county or see more of these statistics, you can access the full report here.
