NKU is partnering with the Commonwealth of Kentucky for the new Northern Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office and Kentucky State Police Crime Lab, located in the university’s former Highland Heights Civic Center.
On the warm afternoon of Sept. 18, a groundbreaking took place on campus for this new addition to the region. Gov. Andy Beshear and other elected officials spoke at the groundbreaking about the development of this project and what it means for the community.
“Since before I took office, this region, the Northern Kentucky region, had been without a medical examiner’s office,” Beshear said. “This has placed an unnecessary burden on medical examiner’s offices across our state, as well as law enforcement, funeral homes, and most importantly, families of victims”.
Previously, bodies would have to be transported to cities like Louisville and Lexington to be examined. Beshear said he is dedicated to reducing crime and bringing justice to Kentuckians, people “who are waiting too long.” The location of the facility will play a role in how soon people can get results.
“With a local office right here, families and victims will get answers more quickly and efficiently than ever before,” NKU President Cady Short-Thompson said. “I cannot fully state how important that will be for people and their families, many of whom will be going through some of the worst days of their lives.”
She said the project gives a new use to a building the university formerly received from Highland Heights. The facility will serve Boone, Bracken, Campbell, Carroll, Fleming, Gallatin, Grant, Greenup, Kenton, Lewis, Mason, Owen and Pendleton counties, according to officials.
The addition allows for expanded operations and easier access to local law enforcement, and increases support for investigations with the goal of bringing justice for victims for all 120 of Kentucky’s counties, Beshear said.
A project like this does not happen overnight, with budget and location being a factor in why Northern Kentucky has been without a medical examiner’s office for almost a decade.
“We never expected our Northern Kentucky office to be closed for that long, and I can promise you, we never stopped looking for a location that would allow us to re-open this facility,” Chief Medical Examiner William Ralston said.
Searching for a location for the facility was a process of trial and error, he said. Opening the facility allows these offices to conduct post-mortem examinations, support criminal investigations, provide closure to families, respond locally to natural disasters and mass casualty events, and allow more timely delivery of evidence to law enforcement agencies.
The Office of the State Medical Examiner and the Kentucky state police decided to co-locate in the new facility to make the process as cost-effective as possible for Kentucky taxpayers, according to Beshear. He said he “was proud to be able to secure bipartisan support in 2024 for $21 million in funds for equipment and renovations necessary to open this facility”.
Beshear said medical examiners’ offices might not be something that is often talked about.
“It is vital in supporting all of our Kentucky law enforcement agencies. It provides evidence that is essential in criminal investigations. Without which, justice cannot be served,” he said.
Construction is expected to be finished in early 2028.