Serious concerns regarding procurement process — Medical Examiner contract and Procurement Director 

Editor’s Note: This is a letter addressed to the Mohave County Board of Supervisors. It was printed in our latest edition as a Letter to the Editor.

Dear Members of the Board of Supervisors,

I am writing as a Mohave County resident to bring to your attention what appears to be a fundamentally flawed and potentially corrupt procurement process surrounding the Medical Examiner contract. These flaws were specifically addressed by Supervisor Ron Gould during the October 20 meeting. The November 3, meeting must address not only fraudulent conduct, but also the procurement practices that have shielded accountability. As well as the secrecy that is occurring.

Procurement Director has made statements to this Board that are directly contradictory and raise serious questions about the integrity of the bidding process:

• She described a “secret committee” of five people selected as the preferred candidate after she stated suspiciously bid the same.

• In the same presentation, she claimed the process was “transparent”

These two statements cannot both be true. Transparency and secrecy are mutually exclusive concepts. A truly transparent procurement process requires:

• Public disclosure of committee members

• Clear evaluation criteria

• Documented scoring and deliberations

• Opportunity for public scrutiny

Instead, she has orchestrated an opaque process that conceals the identities of decision-makers who awarded a contract to someone with extensive documented morbid misconduct.

A Pattern of Protection

The evidence suggests she has worked for several years to maintain a contract despite mounting evidence of serious problems:

• The medical examiner was featured in three Fox 10 News investigative reports titled “Dealing with a Dead” documenting his mismanagement

• He mishandled deceased bodies under county care

• He lied to this Board about his ongoing involvement in the funeral business

• On October 20, 2025, he was caught in this deception—a violation of Arizona law regarding fraud in procurement

• His own employees have reported bodies being left on the ground

• Employees report bodies stored at dangerously high temperatures

• Whistleblowing employees are too terrified to show their faces publicly for fear of retaliation

The fundamental question

Why would a procurement director fight to maintain a contract with someone facing such serious allegations? Why would the committee members need to remain secret? What possible justification exists for this lack of transparency in a matter involving public funds and public trust?

The families who have lost loved ones deserve answers. County taxpayers funding this contract deserve answers. And this Board has an obligation to demand answers.

Requested Actions

I respectfully urge you to:

1. Demand full disclosure of the “secret committee” members who selected the medial examiner

2. Require a complete audit of the procurement process and all communications between the medial examiner’s office and the procurement office

3. Investigate whether the procurement process violated Arizona public meetings laws or procurement statutes

4. Terminate the medical examiner contract immediately based on fraud in procurement

5. Institute mandatory transparency requirements for all future Medical Examiner contract decisions

6. Review procurement’s role in this matter and determine whether her continued service as Procurement Director serves the public interest

Protecting Whistelblowers

The fact that county employees are afraid to show their faces when reporting bodies left on the ground and stored at high temperatures reveals a toxic culture of retaliation. This Board must ensure that whistleblowers are protected and that their concerns are investigated independently.

Conclusion

Lying to Mohave County supervisors, secret committees, contradictory statements about transparency, protection of a contractor with multiple documented failures, and terrified employees; this is not how an honest government operates. The people of Mohave County deserve better.

I urge you to press charges against the medical examiner and make an example out of him; Investigate this matter thoroughly and restore integrity to both the Medical Examiner’s office and the procurement process that has failed to protect the public interest.

Donna Ramirez