HAILEY, Idaho — During a public meeting in Blaine County on Tuesday, Blaine County Coroner Russ Mikel faced a litany of questions from county officials regarding reports of autopsy mismanagement and lackluster record-keeping.
Throughout the meeting, the 82-year-old Mikel pushed back on those allegations, stating that any missteps were accidental or caused by law enforcement obstruction.
At the beginning of the meeting, Mikel acknowledged that scrutiny regarding his coroner practices arose after the Ada County Coroner, Richard D. Riffle, contacted Blaine County Commission chair, Marianne "Muffy" Davis, regarding problems surrounding Blaine County autopsy scheduling practices.
Ada County Coroner officials have rejected two autopsy reports from Blaine County in the past year.
He responded to that claim by saying, "I'd like to refute that." He also noted that Marianne Davis and Blaine County Sheriff, Morgan Ballis, have previously requested his resignation, which he has denied.
Mikel went on to read from notes, saying that the biggest issue surrounding autopsies in Blaine County is that law enforcement often fails to immediately notify the coroner of a recent death. He also claims that officers regularly tamper with death scenes before the coroner's arrival, making it hard for him to collect meaningful information that would help in any cause of death investigation.
"I'm not allowed into the scene to investigate, the law says that the coroner is to be notified immediately, [and] that the law enforcement's role is to preserve the scene until the coroner can begin a joint investigation with law enforcement," explained Mikel.
The Blaine County Coroner says that oftentimes, police have removed critical pieces of evidence, such as firearms, prescriptions, and even money, that he says disappeared during the course of an investigation.
When asked by Morgan Baird why he didn't bring the conflict with law enforcement to the attention of a County Prosecutor, Mikel responded by blaming the new forensic pathology process set up by Ada County in 2025, at the same time admitting he had yet to talk to Sheriff Ballis about the issue.
"We have mentioned this time and time again through law enforcement, right. Sheriff Bayless is new. I haven't actually sat down with him. Talk to him about it. And so it isn't and I and I've been making it work as it is, without upsetting their system and and and trying to interfere with that and so and until the new. National Guidelines went into effect January 1 of 2025. It was working. I was able to get autopsies done without a question. Time and time again over the years. And but suddenly it became an issue. When Ada County inaugurated the new process." - Russ Mikel, Blaine County Coroner
Tim Graves from the Blaine County Prosecutor's Office reminded Mikel that, per Idaho law, the county coroner is required to file a written autopsy report with the county clerk for every autopsy performed. County officials say they've never received one of those reports, and Mikel said the lack of reporting was due to technical issues.
Graves also raised concerns regarding the storage of autopsy documents at the Wood River Chapel, which is owned by Mikel and serves as the ad hoc coroner facility.
The County Commissioners noted that they are currently looking at new coroner facilities in the area.
Toward the end of the meeting, the two sides did agree to begin filing autopsy reports directly with the County Clerk moving forward.
First elected to the Blaine County Coroner position in 2018, Mikel's term is due to end in January of 2027.
