An osteopath is running for coroner in El Paso County promising to be a “freedom doctor” who will stand up for patients’ rights. As coroner, however, Dr. Rae Ann Weber would only see patients who have died.

In the upcoming June Republican primary, Weber is challenging incumbent Dr. Leon Kelly, a forensic pathologist, who was elected in 2018, after serving as the deputy chief medical examiner.

Colorado coroners are required by state law to determine the cause of death for those who pass suddenly, violently or in an unexplained manner. Only board certified pathologists can complete autopsies under state law.

However, the law does not require coroner candidates to have any medical or death investigation training prior to running for the office. The antiquated system of coroners in Colorado dates back to the late 1800s and in most states has been replaced by medical examiner systems, which rely on forensic pathologists, said Dr. Michael Doberson, the former Arapahoe County coroner.

“Colorado is in the vast minority of hanging on to the coroner system,” he said. 

Under the antiquated system, El Paso County evolved into a hub of services for 22 other Colorado counties because it has been led by a forensic pathologist for decades. 

“They are a very intricate, important service for our county and numerous counties here in the state,” said Randy Keller, Fremont County coroner. The El Paso County office completed 79 autopsies for Fremont’s office last year, he said.

The El Paso County office of forensic pathologists, including Kelly, completed 1,293 autopsies in 2020 including 920 local deaths, the county coroner’s report said. Once autopsies are complete in criminal cases those forensic pathologists also testify in criminal trials. If a forensic pathologist is contracted by a county, the professional can charge separately for services at trial. 

‘One-stop shop’

The local office is also the only one in the state to have an in-house toxicology lab and it allows for much faster turnaround times and more timely data around certain trends, such as the fentanyl epidemic. For county’s like Fremont, it means the office is a one-stop shop for needed services, Keller said. 

The regional hub system is needed, in part, because of the national shortage of forensic pathologists. The shortage is only expected to get worse as older professionals retire, said Dr. Kathryn Pinneri, president of the National Association of Medical Examiners.

If Kelly loses his seat, he said he expects that the other forensic pathologists in the office would leave because they would no longer be working in an environment where they can learn from an experienced professional, and that would undermine the office’s position as a regional hub. 

“It all collapses without an El Paso County that is led by a forensic pathologist,” Kelly said. 

If drastic changes happened within the El Paso County office, Keller said his office may need to go to Douglas County or Denver for autopsies.

“Dr. Leon Kelly, his forensic pathologists and his staff provide professional services for a large percentage of this state and do a very, very good job,” Keller said. “We are very happy with their services.”

If Weber was elected she would have to complete 40 hours of training for new coroners and then become a certified death investigator, which includes 20 hours of training and attending five autopsies, said Kelly, who is also president of the Colorado Coroners Association.

Campaigning on pandemic

Weber has made issues related to the pandemic the centerpiece of her campaign.

On her website she states she is “dedicated to fighting for patient’s rights to determine their choice regarding any and all vaccines as well as their preference for hospital treatment protocols,” although coroners don’t work with living patients. 

She also states that freedoms were infringed on during the pandemic because of inflated death numbers and she will not sign any certificates that have not been fully investigated and vetted to ensure their accuracy.

Weber did not return requests for comment for this story.  

Weber is an osteopath who founded the Family Care Center, which provides behavioral health care across six locations. She founded the medical offices with her husband Dr. Charles Weber, who is a psychiatrist and addictionologist, according to the business’ website. 

She was also active in protests over COVID-19 mandates and that led to some run-ins with police.

She received a letter from Cheyenne Mountain School District 12 in September reminding her she was legally prohibited from being on school district property because she was arrested and charged with trespassing at a contentious board meeting in August, during which many members of the public came to speak against masks.

She came back on to school district property in September to join another mask protest despite being barred from the property. The police records related to the arrest have been sealed. 

The district allowed her back on school property in December.

During the county assembly, she told the crowd that she has received two complaints against her medical license during the pandemic for sharing “so-called medical misinformation.”

A request for the complaints against her license was denied by the Department of Regulatory Agencies because public disciplinary actions have not been taken. 

‘Very heavy work’

Kelly made his case for the coroner’s office at a public debate for local Republicans in March that Weber did not attend. He said his experience sets him apart from both Weber and the Democrat in the race, Bridget Garner.

“I have done the autopsies. I have investigated the deaths. I have testified in murder trials. I have identified human remains. I have collected evidence. I have done it all thousands of times. Neither of the people running against me have done any of it, ever,” Kelly said. 

While in office he went beyond the basic job description and worked to address the teen suicide epidemic that started around 2014. He worked closely with the El Paso County Public Health  Department developing prevention models that are now being applied elsewhere, Public Health Director Susan Wheelan said. Through that work he has built trust within the community, she said. 

“There have been a lot of tears. It is very heavy work. It takes very special people,” she said. 

Kelly is now working on the fentanyl epidemic and veteran suicide prevention efforts, he said during the debate. 

Whoever takes office following the 2022 elections will need to serve as the family physician to the bereaved who can answer questions about the death of the person who has died, said Doberson, the former Arapahoe County coroner.

The person serving in that role must deal with tragedy every day and have qualifications to work with police and the legal community, Doberson said. He would like to see reforms to ensure coroners serving in large Colorado counties in particular are qualified and would not be subject to political winds. 

Doberson was challenged by unqualified competitors and in one case kept his seat by only .6% of the vote. 

“We are not supposed to be political. There are no Republican autopsies or Democratic autopsies,” Doberson said.