Candidates differ on needed medical experience

WALTERBORO — The two men running for Colleton County coroner strongly disagree on whether a medical background is needed to do the job.

Democrat Richard Harvey said his medical background makes him the best candidate because he can assist in investigations and determine when autopsies are necessary.

Republican challenger Michael Crosby said it's more important for the coroner to always be available to the families who lost their loved ones.

Crosby, a longtime ranger with the South Carolina Forestry Commission and an outgoing member of the school board, said he would be a full-time coroner.

"You ask most people who had a death in the family and they don't even know the coroner," Crosby said. "I'll be there to assist them with the paperwork and answer any questions."

Harvey, coroner for the last 16 years, said the only deaths his office doesn't respond to are hospice cases. He said he has personally responded to 86 percent of the more than 330 deaths in the county last year, with a part-time deputy coroner handling the rest.

"I'm on-call 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Harvey said. "Even if I'm not on call, I'm on call."

Crosby said he would devote all of his time to the job, unlike Harvey, who teaches classes part time.

Harvey said he may spend 20 hours a week some weeks teaching advanced life-support classes to physicians and nurses. He said the experience and knowledge he obtains researching and teaching those classes help him perform his duties as coroner.

"It keeps me current on medications," Harvey said. "I can walk into a house, take a look at your medications and, in most cases, tell you what's wrong with you."

Crosby, a former EMT, pointed out that medical knowledge is not a prerequisite for the job. A coroner only has to have a high school diploma. He said he would learn as he goes by taking the mandatory training classes once he's elected.

Harvey said his medical knowledge has helped him on several occasions identify the true cause of death when it wasn't obvious.

"I look out for families when the deceased can no longer look out for themselves," Harvey said. "The family knows an investigation has been done and they're assured that the cause of death and manner of death are true. You need a person in the coroner's office who knows what to look for."

MICHAEL CROSBY

PARTY: Republican.

BIRTHDATE: Dec. 30, 1959.

FAMILY: Wife, Myra, and two children.

EDUCATION: Attended Ruffin High School for three years, graduated from Andrew Jackson Academy in Ehrhardt in 1978.

OCCUPATION: Forest supervisor for the S.C. Forestry Commission.

PREVIOUS ELECTED OFFICE: Colleton County School Board member for District 1 since 2000.

SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME: "A lot of people don't know I like to farm."

NAME A SPECIFIC GOAL YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH IF ELECTED: "I'm going to be a full-time coroner. My goal is to meet fully with every family that has a death in the family."

RICHARD M. HARVEY

PARTY: Democratic (I).

BIRTHDATE: Oct. 30, 1954.

FAMILY: Wife, Laurie, and three children.

EDUCATION: Graduated from Lawrence Academy in Groton, Mass., in 1972; received a bachelor's degree in biology, pre-med, in 1983. Attended perfusion school at the Medical University of South Carolina.

OCCUPATION: Colleton County coroner.

PREVIOUS ELECTED OFFICE: Coroner since 1992.

SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME: "That I'm a cancer survivor."

NAME A SPECIFIC GOAL YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH IF ELECTED: "To continue with the advancement of the coroner's office to include the newest technology in death investigations."