The Coroner's Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence

by Terence Keel

For readers of His Name Is George Floyd and Under the Skin

A landmark investigation into forensic medicine that exposes the systematic concealment of state-sanctioned violence through death investigations

Each year, police officers kill over 1,000 people they've sworn to protect and serve. While some cases, like George Floyd's and Sandra Bland's, capture national attention, most victims remain nameless, their stories untold. The Coroner's Silence reveals a disturbing truth about these coroners and other death investigators are often complicit in obscuring the violent circumstances of in-custody deaths. 

Through rigorous research—including critical records analysis, public health studies, and interviews with victims' families—this book unmasks the systemic failures within forensic medicine. Terence Keel shows how incomplete autopsy reports, mishandled medical documents, and strategically lost evidence effectively shield law enforcement from accountability. 

The Coroner’s Silence uncovers how the current system of death investigation operates as a mechanism of institutional safeguarding. By highlighting the structural powerlessness of coroners and their disconnection from the communities most affected by police violence, Keel demonstrates how bureaucratic processes can render human suffering invisible. 

True accountability requires more than procedural reform. It demands a fundamental reimagining of how we investigate, document, and understand deaths at the hands of state institutions. The Coroner's Silence is a crucial intervention that challenges us to confront the deeply ingrained mechanisms that perpetuate systemic violence.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, True Crime, Crime, Politics

224 pages, Hardcover

Published November 11, 2025

About the author

Terence Keel is an award-winning scholar, the founding director of the BioCritical Studies Lab, and a professor of human biology, society, and African American studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is author of "Divine Variations: How Christian Thought Became Racial Science" and co-editor of "Critical Approaches to Science and Religion. Keel has received fellowships from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health.

Reviews

[sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

really great!! balanced the personal + academic well, lots of information i didn't already know in here + i appreciated the approach to discussing victims of police brutality as much more than just numbers or cases. i don't personally find it important to make the argument that change would be good for the white people actively advocating against it - but the author thinks that's important, and a difference in political philosophy is irrelevant when this is such an honest, focused and important account of a system that does tremendous visible and invisible harm. highly recommend!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book on the heels of “How the Word is Passed” by Clint Smith, so this topic was doubly heavy for me as they were back to back reads. Coupled and compounded with the latest ICE raids and the deaths of Keith Porter, Renee Good, and Alex Pretti, the topic of how state sanctioned law enforcement kills people was echoing in every cell of my body.

Clint Smith, in his book, “How the Word is Passed,” discusses how Black bodies are still used for slavery under the 13th Amendment, and how they are used for forced labor in places like Angola Prison. However, there, in Angola, Clint talks about the lives that are used for labor. Terence Keel, discusses how the majority of Black bodies don’t even make it to see their bodies be used in this forced slave labor in prison. The staggering statistics about how more than half of people who are in police custody, don’t even make it to sentencing was astounding. Black bodies are killed more often before even finding out whether they are guilty or innocent. These murders, and let’s call them murders, are happening while in-custody awaiting trial.

Keel discussed how the state misremembers the death of an inmate, and how they treat the deceased because they ARE prisoners. Black people, in this case, and in every case, are never free, not in life, not in death.

“People in state custody become less than human, and those that perish are denied dignity, respect, and forgiveness.” (p.1)

Listen to: Police State by Dead Prez

Keel states that the people who are incarcerated are first victims to the nation’s inability to provide even the most basic necessities: Healthcare, food, and housing. In this way, those who are incarcerated die two deaths. In addition to dying twice, medical examiners and coroners provide a cover for the law enforcement to make it appear as if its the victim’s own fault, be it an underlying health condition or behavior that caused their own death. This was seen just as recently as January 2026, when Alex Pretti of Minnesota was killed by ICE, and they resurrected earlier confrontations with ICE when he was protecting others from ICE. They used his previous actions to justify, after his death, why he mostly likely died, as if it was the victim’s fault, not ICE who murdered him in cold murderous blood without cause. How can someone who is in the act of defending their constitutional rights be executed before any judgment has been made? Why do the police and other law enforcement dig deep into individuals’ lives they have murdered to justify why these people died, as if they had it coming or deserved it? Furthermore, these medical examiners and coroners report to those who are responsible for settlement of payments to families due to death by police violence. There is a conflict of interest, as the law personnel who ended the victim’s life, are most often in the same room as the examiner who is creating the cause of death, which allows for the government to protect itself against any wrongdoing of how that person died while in-custody of the state.

Black people are already subjected to the lack of imagination of medical professionals to assist them in helping resolve, cure, and treat medical conditions that could possibly extend their lives. When it comes to those who have been deemed undesirable in our community, this limited imagination and indifference plays a part in shortening lives, especially Black lives.

The structural racism that exists in our nation shortens Black lives. Period.

White people have had access to the best education since the beginning of time, but Black people, who have been shut out constantly, are the main ones making discoveries, inventions, creating vaccines, and contributing to extending life for all people whether we have consented or not (i.e., HeLa cells from Henrietta Lacks). However, the whites want the credit without doing any of the heavy work and leaving out the contributions that would not have been made possible without the help of a Black person (i.e., Vivien Thomas).

American police kill on average 1200 people a year during arrest or while attempting to place them in custody” (p. 21)

Just recently we saw 3 murders happen on live TV, Keith Porter, Renee Good, and Alex Pretti. In all 3 cases, DOJ has made statements that sounded as if it was the victims’ fault as to why they died. None of those murders explained how we all saw them murdered in cold blood. Ida B. Wells said, “those who commit the murders write the reports.” The government have already made statements before the bodies were even on the cooling board, to say how it was the victim’s fault as to why they are no longer of this world. However, we all saw, in color, in broad daylight, how these people were shot. Execution style. There is no medical examiner or coroner that can explain it away in these cases. Yet, they are trying to revise the event in a way that puts distance between police violence while we have photographs, videos in HD, and first person accounts as to what transpired.

Keel explains that 74% of most in-custody deaths happen while the individual was in pre-trial status. These people have not even been convicted of a crime yet; however, 74% wind up dead before they are even found innocent or guilty. In the past, the coroner had a judicial responsibility in determining the cause of death, and who was responsible. However, as times have changed, the coroner and medical examiner have been relieved of their duties to point their finger at who caused the actual death of a person. Now, the coroner is a medical doctor, trained in forensic science and medicine, and has been removed of all judicial powers, creating scientific narratives as to how an individual died, and not to how law enforcement was at the center for the cause of death. Not only are they unable to have any judicial powers, the origin of the coroner has been made of mainly white men, as the position was birthed out of racism. When someone dies, the coroner is right in the middle of extracting the reasons how a person died; and seeing that there are racist ties to this position, while being neutered of their judicial powers, the ability to point to what the real issues are concerning death, especially while incarcerated, has been decimated and redacted down to almost nothing. Families do not get their answers, and the state walks away without any accountability or recourse.

I recently read how a Mexican immigrant was taken to a Minnesota hospital after an encounter with ICE, with them stating that he "purposefully ran headfirst into a wall." Meanwhile his head and face are shattered with multiple broken bones and a bleeding brain, and the medical professionals are not believing this statement from law enforcement, assessing the severity of the injuries of this man. (January 31, 2026, Associated Press) In-custody deaths and injuries are being explained away as if it's the victims fault. Medical professionals, in cases like this, are also not authorized to discuss patient care.

“The myth of American freedom has turned us into terrible caretakers. This is the first and most important thing you have to understand about dying in custody: the violent actions of law enforcement and the inadequacies of our death investigation system are not defects in state governance. Instead, they complete a process of neglect and indifference that have been steady features of American life.” (p.87)

In the Comprise of 1876, which ended the brief Reconstruction period (1865-1877), laws were created, called Jim Crow laws, that established racial segregation and the political disenfranchisement of Black Americans. These laws were designed to revoke the legal gains of Black Americans that were instituted during the Reconstruction period. These laws during this “Great Redemption” period was created to “reassert white supremacy over American lands, institutions, and law.” (p. 39)

Fast forward to April 2021, when the Center for Disease Control (CDC) finally declared that racism in America was a public threat to public health and safety.

Amongst the inherent racism that Black Americans experience, the original founders of America were not champions for having an open government. Transparency and/or free access to state records were not to be had, at all, ever. Think of the current situation with the Epstein files. Secrecy and concealment were central features of the government when America was being founded. Instead, the founders believed in electing officials from the federal side and state side to represent the public’s interests. Only those individuals were then deemed to have access or knowledge of the nation’s operations.

In regards to in-custody reports, autopsies or medical examiner reports, there is no list of people or data that is collected consistently across the states or federal government that can share how individuals are killed by law enforcement. As we recently saw with Alex Pretti’s death, his killer is being protected by the government. The evidence is being shielded by those who murdered him in cold blood, along with all the other individuals who are losing their lives with ICE prowling around violating laws and federal mandates. The Lyndon B. Johnson’s Administration provided the local police with autonomy to disregard federal mandates when it suited them. The administration also allowed police to be armed with military-grade equipment to suppress the leaders of the Black Panther party. Richard Nixon then created the pathways for mass incarceration of Black people, as he turned the spotlight to focus on “Black-on-Black crime,” spewing rhetoric that Blacks were a danger to whites and this spotlight redacted the white terror that was actually happening. Bill Clinton and Joe Biden both helped to pass bipartisan bills to further the rapid mass incarceration amongst Black people. The 1994 Crime Bill allowed for a life sentence after 3 strikes, removed Pell Grants for prisoners, created colorblind justice that targeted minorities, poor people, and substance abuse users. The Crime Bill also created the term “Super Predator” to describe Black people, the bill also expanded capital punishment, expanded police forces, and prison construction expansions. Stop and frisk practices and racial profiling, while punishing children as adults were also apart of this 1994 Crime Bill.

State sanctioned terror has always been a threat to Black people and other politically vulnerable groups. There has been no infrastructure or accountability to protect people from the overreach and terror of the police for civilians. You can see for yourself how Minnesota is dealing with the overreach and terror of ICE as it comes to the lack of accountability and severe overreach of federal law enforcement; cloaked in guises of immigration enforcement, but its really the insurgence of the secret government that was once underground, known as the Ku Klux Klan. Instead of white bedsheets over their faces, it’s now balaclavas and neck gaiters covering federal agents faces to shield their identity.

Since the meaning of “homicide” changed during the Jim Crow era, which allowed law enforcement to take people’s lives as a part of their duty, Americans now have little to no protection from being terrorized by police violence. “Medical examiners avoid clear language binding the actions of police to the bodies of their victims,” and knowing that these same police will be in the room while the autopsy is being conducted, the coverup is clear to distance the police from any accountability." (p.157)

Keel doesn’t leave us without hope, even though the statistics and history behind police violence is staggering to digest. Community based justice centers, that focus on oversight and accountability for the actions of law enforcement exist. The centers allow for empowering communities to help repair harm, create avenues of justice that does not go through the court system, and implement community service to help strength and bolster people to take care of their community in better ways for all.

As we continue to monitor the situation in Minnesota and other communities that have experienced or will experience the terror of federal law enforcement, we must stick together and fight for our communities. We must stand up for the vulnerable populations who are abused by the laws and mandates that were created to keep them imprisoned. We need to care about the individuals who are imprisoned to help us all have safer communities, and demand our leaders who write laws to create real change of improvement and rehabilitation. We owe it to ourselves to have a safer world. We must demand change. “Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor but must be demanded.” - Martin Luther King Jr.

Overall this book is a solid 5. Highly recommend this book as a companion read to the book titled, “How The Word is Passed” by Clint Smith.

Thank you to Coriolis and the author Terence Keel for this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Robert Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "The Coroner’s Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence,”Terence Keel delivers a powerful and unsettling examination of how death investigation systems in the United States help obscure the true scope of police violence. Keel argues that coroners and medical examiners, often perceived as neutral scientific authorities, play a critical role in shaping public understanding of state violence through the classification and documentation of deaths. A key distinction between these roles matters. Medical examiners are typically licensed physicians with formal training in pathology and are appointed to their positions, while coroners are often elected officials who may not be required to have medical training at all. This structural difference shapes how death investigations are conducted and how findings are interpreted, particularly in jurisdictions where coroners may rely heavily on law enforcement narratives. By analyzing autopsy reports, inquest records, and legal frameworks, Keel demonstrates how racial bias is embedded not only in policing but also in the bureaucratic afterlife of those killed. The book is especially compelling in its insistence that violence does not end at the moment of death. It continues through institutional practices that determine whether a death is labeled “homicide,” “accident,” or “justifiable.” This book is an attempt to stop second deaths from happening. Second deaths are when the government hides what happens and tries to act like they didn’t exist. This book exposes how Black and marginalized victims are systematically rendered invisible through official recordkeeping, limiting public accountability and reinforcing racial hierarchies.

One of the book’s most striking contributions is its analysis of language and the rhetorical construction of death reports. Keel shows how official documents rely on passive voice, technical jargon, and selective detail to subtly shift responsibility away from police officers and onto the deceased. Phrases such as “officer-involved shooting” or “the subject expired after restraint” obscure agency and minimize violence, while descriptors of the victim’s size, prior health conditions, or alleged drug use implicitly justify lethal force. The framing of cause and manner of death becomes a powerful narrative tool. Medicalized terminology can transform an act of state violence into a clinical inevitability. In this way, reports do not merely describe events. They actively construct a version of reality that aligns with institutional interests. Keel’s critique reveals that objectivity in death documentation is often performative, masking the ways language functions to protect law enforcement and shape public perception. By exposing how bureaucratic prose becomes a site of political struggle, This book forces readers to reconsider the authority of official records and the profound consequences of how deaths are written into history.

[Hollie A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoughtful, deeply-researched, well-reasoned and important book, Terence Keel’s “The Coroner’s Silence” will be a meaningful addition to the bookshelves of anyone interested in American history, race, and the ways in which “society lives in the body” (Keel, p. 53-88). Biologist and scholar of African American studies, Keel masterfully weaves together well-known and lesser-known stories from the 2020s, the aftermath of the Civil War, and the politicalization of death investigators to show how “life-diminishing racism” (p 74) has been institutionalized in the United States, even to the extent that it impacts our understanding of death. “Americans have simply learned to live with the perishing of others,” Keels writes, as he demonstrates how economic status, nationality, and race influence who gets access to medical care, who gets treatment for chronic conditions, and who gets drug-tested even after being shot to death. This is an eye-opening work that shines a much-needed light on an often mysterious place: the coroner’s table.
I myself am a scholar of race, class, and gender with a particular focus on the Jim Crow era, yet I was still surprised by many of the connections Keel points out, connections that once you see them feel like they should have been obvious all along.
I am also a person with a specific aversion to learning science. I am not anti-science, I just have never been able to make heads-or-tails of it. As such, I very much appreciate Keel’s everyday vernacular, use of understandable visual aids starting in the very first chapter, and what seems to be his conscious effort to make biology accessible to non-scientists.
Without reservation, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about the functions and dysfunctions in American society, or who just wants to experience (through an admittedly difficult and disturbing topic) the joy of learning something new.

[Fishface · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was OK. It's best understood as a history of the legal system in the United States and the many factors that combine to protect the police, jail staff and other players in the system from ever being held accountable for many, many deaths that never needed to happen. The author tries to encompass all the deaths that happen associated with law enforcement, including bystanders hit by cars fleeing the police and ex-prisoners who kill themselves after being traumatized behind bars. Most of the book was historical but only at the end did we get to see what research has found -- not much, but what they did find was very troubling. The book could have been organized differently to get us to the research findings sooner and gey us to the hopeful developments and new programs that might prove to make a difference. The editing of this book was weird but it shouldn't stop you from reading it.

[Sherry Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an eye opener. Heartache among families for sure.