Yazoo County welcomes a new deputy coroner following Monday’s reappointment of the position that has been held by Willie Lear for close to four decades.
With the Yazoo County Board of Supervisors’ approval, Coroner Ricky Shivers appointed Benji Scott as the new deputy coroner.
The matter was brought to the county board after Shivers said he received a request from the state medical examiner’s office.
“The state medical examiner’s office has asked that (Lear) be removed as the deputy coroner because he is not or has not been able to access or get into the new computer system,” Shivers said. “He is just not able to do it. But he has given this county 37 years of service as a deputy coroner.”
Shivers said Lear’s employment with Pafford in Jackson has also been an issue.
“That is another problem,” Shivers said. “Every morning, he drives in the ambulance to Jackson. He is over there every day, Monday through Friday, so he is not always available. This past Labor Day weekend, we had a triple shooting in Vaughan. I was out of town with my family, and he refused to go to that shooting call out there. I had to call the coroner from Holmes County to make the call.”
The deputy coroner position, which comes with a $300 monthly salary, is appointed by Shivers but must be approved by the county board. Shivers recommended Benji Scott be given the position.
“He has still, with my assistance, kept his certifications up,” Shivers said. “He is still a deputy coroner with the state.”
Scott’s appointment was approved by the county board, which also moved forward with providing Lear with a resolution for his 37 years of service to the community.
