MEMBERS
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capability. It’s really fun to teach. I enjoy getting out from behind
the desk, and it fulfills a desire to continue working with animals.”
Dr. Weakley-Jones has also served as a clinical professor for
the UofL School of Medicine, a gratis faculty member at UK and
a volunteer advisor for the Louisville Zoo. When the position of
Coroner opened in 2010, she jumped at the chance to leave her
mark on an office with whom she’d long collaborated.
“I knew Jerry Abramson, the mayor at the time, and he was
responsible for appointing a coroner when there was a vacancy out
of sync with election years. I told him I was going to run for coroner
as my time as medical examiner was coming to an end. I’d already
worked with the deputies. He said, ‘Why the heck would you want
to be coroner?’ I don’t think he realized that I’d been examining
deceased cases as medical examiner already. As coroner, I fill out
the paper work requesting the medical examiner perform their
autopsies and gather evidence.”
and Scott. Each one is now married with a pair of children of their
own, one in California and the other in Colorado. When asked her
goals for the future, she says in a near whisper, “Retire.” Although it
won’t happen right away, Dr. Weakley-Jones and her husband soon
hope to buy an RV and make long trips out West.
“We want to see our grandkids and spend some time traveling.
That’s the plan,” she said. “I’m proud of this service I’ve been able to
provide for Kentucky and for Jefferson County. I love this job and
the people I work with. I never thought I’d be here.”
Aaron Burch is the communications specialist for the Greater Louisville
Medical Society.
Dr. Weakley-Jones has now been elected t wice to the office of
Coroner, carrying out four-year terms from 2011-2014 and then
2015-2018. At the time of this interview, she had just filed paper-
work to appear on the ballot in the 2018 election. “No one wanted
to run against me,” she laughed. “I have no opponents, so I’ll be the
coroner for the next four years.”
Although she loves her work, she hopes to relax and enjoy the
quiet life soon. She and her husband raised two children, Stephanie
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