DuPage County Coroner Richard Jorgensen is running for a fourth term but will have to overcome a challenge from a Democrat for only the second time since he took over the office.
Jorgensen, a Wheaton Republican who was first elected coroner 12 years ago, faces Judith Lukas in next monthβs election. The race pits a retired vascular and trauma surgeon against a Winfield Township trustee who has promoted her nursing background.
βI have a vast amount of medical, surgical experience, administrative experience. And on top of that, Iβve been a coroner in many, many high-profile and difficult cases. You canβt come to this job and get on-the-job training,β Jorgensen said during a recent endorsement interview with the Daily Herald.
Lukas, a registered nurse, said sheβs dealt with end-of-life issues.
βSo as far as sensitivity, confidentiality, patientsβ rights, familiesβ rights, thatβs in my DNA,β Lukas said at a League of Women Voters forum in Wheaton.
Lukas, a township trustee since 2021, said she would work on bringing a forensic laboratory to the coronerβs office. She wrote in a candidate questionnaire that she would take advantage of grants and federal money toward building a lab.
βRunning the lab will create high-tech jobs in the county that are very good-paying jobs. In addition to that, I want to do all of the forensic lab work for DuPage County for all the police departments,β Lukas said.
The coronerβs office uses a national lab mainly to test for legal and illegal drugs, Jorgensen said in a follow-up email. He called the lab the βgold standardβ in part because of its knowledge of local and national drug trends and Jorgensen noted many of the coroners in Illinois use that lab.
In addition, a crime lab at the DuPage sheriffβs office is available to the coroner and other jurisdictions investigating a death.
βItβs been found to be one of the best crime labs and forensic labs in the state, so we use them extensively and that is available to DuPage County right now and thatβs what the police rely on,β Jorgensen said.
He said he has βcompletely revamped and reorganizedβ the coronerβs office to be more efficient.
βWhen I first started, there were 4,500 cases that we reviewed. This last year, we reviewed 6,800 cases. We have the same headcount and we have taken care of that increased workload by doing the job better with less,β Jorgensen said at the League forum.
Lukas suggested in the questionnaire that a needed improvement is the office notifying the public when a death occurs in police custody.
βThere are laws that dictate what the coronerβs office can and cannot release, but just as thereβs a press release when a pedestrian is hit by a train or someone is found deceased, we also need to have press releases any time thereβs a death in custody, whether itβs the county jail or in any of our police forces. And I think without that, we have distrust in the public,β she said.
Jorgensen said he responds to journalists personally and gives the information that he can at the time.
βThese are families and people. And first of all, we have to identify the person,β he said. βThen we have to identify next of kin and that they are having the worst day of their lives. β¦ I have not typically put out a lot of press releases for exactly that because then weβre putting out the names of people and it may very, very affect the living and the families that remain.β
The election is Nov. 5.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20241017/news/dupage-county-coroner-candidates-clash-over-experience-ideas-for-office/