CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Over the past few months the Nueces County Medical Examiner's Office has seen it's chief medical examiner and chief deputy arrested.
The Texas Rangers and District Attorney's Office launched an investigation into that office and it's practices.
Dr. Timothy Fagen has been on the job as the chief medical examiner for Nueces County for three weeks now.
Fagen has been practicing medicine for 17 years and was recently working at the Travis County Medical Examiner's Office. He also served as a flight surgeon for the Air Force in Iraq and Afghanistan. His mission is to attempt to rebrand and rebuild the department's reputation.
"Obviously there has been some doubt about the quality of the work that this office has put out, and so that is one of my top priorities, is to ensure that the day I started that we were putting out a quality work product," Fagen said.
One of the questions 3NEWS asked Fagen was why he took the job? He said one reason was his ties to the Corpus Christi area. Fagen's father graduated from Ray High School and went to Del Mar College before he joined the Marines in World War ll. The $500,000 salary was also a big consideration, but it was really the job he was after.
"To become chief medical examiner for any office is an incredible opportunity," Fagen said.
Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales and the rest of the commissioners are looking forward to helping Fagen succeed in the Coastal Bend. They've already approved using $7 million to build a new autopsy medical facility.
"I do think that the court has made a good choice based upon the resume, the interviews and his vision. I think what you're looking for is a serious individual who has serious credentials, we've got that," Canales said.
Commisoner Brent Chesney said that Fagen's arrival brings great prospects for the medical examiner's office.
"We are thrilled to have Dr. Fagen. I think he's an extremely talented man, this is his first opportunity to be an M.E. and I think he's ready to make his mark," Chesney said.
Fagen reminds everyone that they are rebuilding the department but he feels he has a great staff who are helping to make his job a little bit easier.
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