Newly-elected Monroe County Coroner Tom Yanac says he is trying to restore respect to the office.

Robert Allen had served the county as coroner for many several terms. However, last year the office came under attack from two former deputy coroners, Lauren Fizz and Michael Sak. Both are suing Allen, his wife, Kathleen “Traci” Allen, and the county for wrongful termination and numerous other charges, including hostile work environment and sexual harassment.

Traci Allen left the office shortly after Yanac took over on Jan. 2.

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“I want to bring the respect back to this office that it deserves,” Yanac said. “In regard to personnel and administration. The employees that remain here are in complete agreement.”

Deputy Coroner Sarah Lawrence says there is a “renewed sense of calm in the office” that wasn’t there before. Yanac agrees.

“The difference from when I first came in here until now, is very noticeable,” he said. “This is a very difficult job and the deputies need a place where they can come back to after being in the field and decompress. It’s much better now.”

Changes

Yanac is working on some major changes for his office.

“We are hoping to relocate to a single facility where the administration and holding would be in the same location,” Yanac said.

The coroner’s office is currently located at the county administration building in Stroudsburg. The holding/morgue is located in a different part of the county.

The lawsuits against the Allens claim that Traci Allen took medication and personal items belonging to the recently deceased.

Yanac is making sure protocols are followed in recovering medications or personal effects during death investigations.

“There are checks and balances throughout the system,” he said. “The officers and the deputies both sign when medication or personal items are recovered. When items are brought to our offices, they are confirmed and resigned for again.”

According to Yanac, personal items and medication are logged in the deceased’s file. Personal items are returned to family members while all medications that come into their possession are eventually incinerated.

Yanac feels that the change in coroners has already made a difference with the community.

“We have established respect early on,” he said. “We have been recognized by local law enforcement for how we handled a recent double homicide and a murder-suicide.

“We are also taking a new approach to dealing with the media,” Yanac added. “We plan to work diligently with law enforcement to be absolutely accurate and compliant with information that is released.”

Hands-on

Yanac says he intends to be a hands-on coroner.

“I have put myself on the on-call list along with the deputies and I will be working calls the same as they do. I will also be the one running the office and administrative side of what goes on.”

The office is now open on Saturdays and minor holidays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The office is only closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, July Fourth and Labor Day.

“It is mostly for the benefit of funeral homes, because it’s too much to expect families to have to wait up to three days for the paperwork they need to make their plans,” said deputy coroner and office manager Maurice Moreno.

The Saturday hours also allow working people who need to pick up personal effects or paperwork can access the office without taking off from work.

Yanac also said he is not pleased with the current pay scale at the coroner’s office.

“We had a recent listing for a deputy starting at $15 per hour,” Yanac said. “For that you get to be on call at least two times per week and are required to respond to calls within one hour. Our deputies put their families and their interests second to care for the deceased of this county and their families.

“There is no glitz or glamour in this job. You see people at the absolute worst point of their life. You have to be devoted to be a deputy coroner, and not just in Monroe County, it is the same everywhere.”

Qualifications

The deputies in the Monroe County Coroner’s office have varied backgrounds. Deputy Sarah Lawrence has studied funeral service and Deputy Justin Campion has a master’s in forensic science.

Moreno is trained in finance and forensic accounting and is also a member of the American Board of Medical Legal Death Investigators.

“Deputies come from all walks of life,” said Moreno. “We get to speak for the dead. Sometimes we are their last line of defense.”

The office today is dealing with an increase in accidental deaths due to the opioid crisis. That’s why Yanac insists he and his deputies attend continuing education programs such as the PA Coroner’s Education course offered in Hershey twice yearly. The coroner’s deputies also carry Narcan to combat accidental overdoses that could occur when handling Fentanyl, a highly lethal drug often mixed with opioids.

Besides his duties as coroner, Yanac is also the owner of Yanac Funeral and Cremation Services in Mount Pocono.