Green & Red Podcast #469 – “The Coroner’s Silence: How the State Uses Death Records to Hide Police Violence” w/ Prof. Terence Keel

Date: February 24, 2026
Hosts: Bob Buzzanco (Houston, TX) & Scott Parkin (Berkeley, CA)
Guest: Professor Terence Keel (UCLA), author of The Coroner's Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence

Episode Overview

This episode tackles the crucial but underdiscussed role of coroners and medical examiners in covering up police violence, as exposed in Prof. Terence Keel’s new book. The hosts and guest unravel the mechanics of how death investigations have systematically concealed state-sanctioned violence, examine how structural bias seeps into forensic science, and discuss the political, legal, and economic barriers obstructing justice for victims of police violence.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

How Prof. Keel Came to the Topic

[01:10]

• Inspiration began with the wave of publicized police killings (George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Philando Castile) and the lack of judicial accountability.
• Realization: while we all witnessed George Floyd’s public murder, the official autopsy narrative shifted blame to Floyd’s health, implying he was responsible for his own death.
  • Notable quote:

    "The medical examiner could still write a record that would say, well, yeah, it was homicide, but cardiopulmonary arrest complicated law enforcement to do...meaning Floyd had a bad heart. His heart made it difficult for police to arrest him, so they had to use more force...I wondered, how many more cases like this are there?" – Prof. Terence Keel [02:09]

• Motivated to investigate the system that perpetuates this obfuscation and question the overlooked role of death investigators in justice reform.

The CSI Effect & The Myth of Neutral Forensics

[03:37]

• Pop culture (CSI, etc.) mistakenly frames forensic experts as neutral truth-seekers. In reality, they’re deeply embedded in society’s prevailing biases, especially racism and the empowerment of police.
• Notable quote:

  “These death investigators are writing records that provide cover for police and protect the state against the people. And that's a problem.” – Prof. Keel [05:00]

Lack of Mandatory Autopsies

[05:40]

• In 43 states, autopsies aren't required for deaths in police custody. Medical examiners have broad discretion, leading to minimal or nonexistent investigations that routinely blame natural causes or the victim’s health.
  • The ease of attributing “heart failure” as cause of death masks violence.
• Advocates for uniform laws mandating full autopsies in all custody deaths.

Case Study: John Horton & The Power (and Limits) of Family Advocacy

[08:01]

• Story of John Horton—a young Black man whose death record classified his death as suicide, despite visible evidence of brutality.
  • Only through his mother Helen Jones’ relentless advocacy did the cause get changed to “undetermined.”
  • The system is rigged against families lacking resources, awareness, or tenacity.
• Notable quote:

  “Her experience with this system and these death records was just a powerful insight that I, as an academic researcher alone couldn’t have come to because I didn’t experience the violence of the system firsthand. She did.” – Prof. Keel [10:35]

Barriers to Justice: Money, Records Access & Structural Obfuscation

[11:22]

• Autopsy records are expensive (e.g., $500 in Pennsylvania), inaccessible to poor/working-class families.
• Some states keep records entirely sealed; others allow police or sheriffs to place open records on “security hold.”
• Even when obtained, records are often redacted when investigators sense public scrutiny.
  • Notable quote:

    “We started releasing reports...They started giving us records where they were redacting sections...because we were paying attention.” – Prof. Keel [15:55]

• The Death in Custody Reporting Act (DCRA, 2000) requires law enforcement to self-report deaths—a clear conflict of interest resulting in mass undercounting and misclassification.

How Coroners Get Their Roles: A Patchwork of Accountability

[17:35]

• The role descends from English “crowners.” In the U.S., systems vary: coroners are sometimes elected but often appointed and may not need medical expertise (e.g., in some counties, the sheriff is the coroner).
• The lack of standardization and accountability worsens abuses.

Death Classifications: How Statistics Obscure Violence

[21:08→25:01]

• Five categories: homicide, suicide, accident, natural, undetermined.
• In custody deaths especially involving Black people, coroners disproportionately classify deaths as “natural,” often citing preexisting conditions or drug use—even when violence occurred.
• Gun deaths almost always classified as homicide; others (tasers, asphyxiation, vehicle-related deaths) are vulnerable to bias.
• Notable quote:

  “An overwhelming number of African Americans, when they die in police custody and a gun is not involved, many of those deaths are classified as a natural death.” – Prof. Keel [23:30]

Public Inquests: Political Theater or Real Accountability?

[25:28→27:36]

• Prof. Keel recounts the rare inquest into Andres Guardado’s police killing in Los Angeles. Describes the process as “political pageantry”—appearing democratic but offering no real recourse or accountability for families.

The Role of Federal vs. State Pressure

[29:01]

• The federal executive can set a tone (e.g., via funding threats) but most authority resides at the state level.
• Pressure and reform must come from local activism and sustained public scrutiny.

Evidence of Corruption, Lack of Accountability, and Hope for Change

[36:47]

• Some coroners, off the record, admit being pressured by police to write favorable reports. Few dare confront the system without robust community backing.
• Real change occurs only when public attention is focused; lack of scrutiny allows cover-ups to continue.
• Notable quote:

  “The only reason why we even have [the Death in Custody Reporting Act] is because there was a public demand for it. And that still needs to be the pressure we have to put on this system if we’re going to get out of this mess.” – Prof. Keel [39:53]

Statistics & The Stakes

[43:10]

• Between 2000–2020, at least 32,100 people died during arrests—twice as many as all executions in American history since 1608.
  • Most are male and white by raw numbers; racialized and class injustice are fundamental dynamics.
• Key line:

  "Dying in custody is the new capital punishment." – Prof. Keel [43:39]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you can control the records, you can control who gets to see your work.” – Prof. Keel [40:57]
• “These death investigators are writing records that provide cover for police and protect the state against the people. And that's a problem.” – Prof. Keel [05:00]
• “If the cops are killing us and the coroners are lying about it, that means our criminal justice system is not keeping any of us safe.” – Prof. Keel [41:25]

Solutions & Calls to Action

Community Pressure & Reform

• Community organizing is the primary driver for change, from demanding inquests to seeking independent autopsies.
• Direct pressure on both police and medical examiners is necessary—e.g., protests at coroners’ offices.

  “I think putting pressure, that is the...forensic investigators, they are insulated because there’s all this culture around them as, you know, law abiding folks...the reality is very different.” – Prof. Keel [33:23]

Systemic Recommendations

• Laws should mandate full, independent autopsies for all in-custody deaths.
• Public access to death records should be expanded; bans on police involvement in death investigations should be instituted.
• Investment in mental health, housing, and social services would reduce the need for police intervention and, thus, in-custody deaths.

Changing the Narrative

• Contest the “CSI effect” and the “propaganda” of police–forensic objectivity in media and pop culture.
• Raise public consciousness about the magnitude of deaths and the vastly greater scale of in-custody killings compared to the death penalty.

The Biocritical Studies Lab

[52:06]

• Founded by Prof. Keel in 2020, inspired by his partnership with Helen Jones (mother of John Horton).
• Brings together researchers, students, journalists, and community partners to systematically file FOIA requests, analyze autopsy records, and produce data-driven reports for activists and lawmakers.
• Purpose: transform individual stories into social data, thereby compelling policymakers to reckon with the systemic nature of the issue.

Key Timestamps

• [01:10–03:30] – Prof. Keel explains inspiration, George Floyd, and systemic erasure
• [05:40–07:33] – Lax autopsy requirements and the mechanics of cover-up
• [08:01–11:22] – Case study: John Horton, and the importance of family advocacy
• [14:34–17:35] – Barriers to record access, redaction and concealment
• [21:08–25:01] – Statistical obfuscation and the classification of deaths
• [25:28–29:01] – The limits of inquests and performative accountability
• [33:23–36:47] – Community protest, myth-busting forensic neutrality, need for pressure
• [43:10–46:45] – Scale of the issue, the new “death penalty,” who is most at risk
• [52:06] – The Biocritical Studies Lab’s community–academic approach

Tone & Final Thoughts

Radically inquisitive, urgent, and deeply empathetic, this episode seeks not just to expose how the coroners’ system shields police violence but to imagine (and demand) a fundamentally different paradigm of public health, safety, and justice.
The core message: Ending state violence requires fighting not only against police misconduct but also against the narrative machinery that disappears victims—from the police report to the final death certificate.

Further Reading

• The Coroner’s Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence by Terence Keel

End of summary.