T he idea of moving dead bodies around conjures images of horror movies. But far, far away from scary flicks is the real world of the local coroner who is on call 24/7, rain or snow, and who takes care of the very real need of handling our loved ones after they pass away.
Someone dies at home or is killed in some violent way, it’s very likely Coroner Chad Kelley, or one of his assistants, who goes to the scene to pronounce the person dead. They also see to it that a measure of dignity is offered to that deceased person as the body is taken back to the coroner’s office for holding until the family or the state medical examiner makes the next move.
Kelley, from all appearances, takes his job seriously. No grandstanding, just the efficient carrying out of his duties. With that as a backdrop, it was not surprising when Kelley took the extraordinary step of moving bodies from his office to a couple of area funeral homes. The reason? Kelley had gotten a shut-off notice from Entergy that said the electricity would be turned off if the electric bill wasn’t paid soon.
Kelley, again, from appearances, tries to stay out of politics, even though he holds an elected position, but his predicament was precisely caused by the dysfunction of the Jefferson County Quorum Court — which has been unable to pass a budget for 2025. That has meant no pay for county workers and no bills paid and, as far as Kelley could tell from the shut-off notice, no electricity at the coroner’s office in just a few days.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Did he wait around to see what was going to happen? No, that’s not the way he operates. Taking matters into his own hands, he contacted area funeral homes and asked if they’d be able to store the bodies for him for a time. He also alerted the medical examiner’s office in Little Rock, which was able to speed up the acceptance of bodies from Kelley’s office.
It’s the kind of story that, because of its bizarreness, might show up in a newspaper or on a TV station’s news program in California or Massachusetts. Not exactly the way a community wants to make news, but then the Pine Bluff area is used to that.
The alternative was not acceptable, what with the need for electricity to keep the morgue area chilled, so Kelley made sure the alternative didn’t happen.
In the end, the utility announced that it was not going to shut off the electricity to the coroner’s office, despite the note sent to Kelley’s office. Now the bodies are being shifted back to the coroner’s office.
Not exactly all in a day’s work for Kelley, but it became the day’s work for him, and he handled it. No fanfare. Just Kelley taking care of business for the rest of us.