Under the tutelage of eight board-certified forensic pathologists, this one-year fellowship program prepares pathologists for careers in forensic pathology. The State of New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator, a statewide medical examiner system, is located on the campus of the UNM School of Medicine. This arrangement ensures that the state is provided with excellent facilities and death investigation, as well as affording outstanding educational and research opportunities in forensic pathology.
It is in this fertile environment that the forensic pathology fellow conducts a substantial number of medicolegal autopsies on routine and unusual cases from around the state and is given substantial control of cases (natural, accidental, suicidal, and homicidal) at all levels, commensurate with their increasing ability.
Training during the year includes rotations in toxicology, forensic odontology, forensic anthropology, and the state and local crime labs. The trainee is afforded the opportunity to testify in court, under supervision and direction, and is also encouraged to witness testimony by others who are experienced in courtroom dialogue.
The Office of the Medical investigator is a state of the art facility with in house computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Postmortem CT scans are performed on the majority of decedents and are interpreted by a board-certified forensic radiologist. Trainees will have in-depth exposure to radiology interpretation under the guidance of our forensic radiologist.
In this system, consultations are presented to all of the senior pathologists for review and advice. The trainee is allowed to actively participate in these interesting consultations. In addition to the case-by-case instruction, the trainee will be involved in didactic teaching and should be a participant in the annual Medicolegal investigation of Death seminar conducted each year for investigators and law enforcement personnel.
- Dr. Lauren Dvorscak, Director, Forensic Pathology Fellowship Program
Heather S. Jarrell, MD
Heather S. Jarrell, MD, Chief Medical Investigator, received her undergraduate degree from Valdosta State University and her medical degree from Mercer University School of Medicine. She then completed her Anatomic Pathology residency and a Neuropathology fellowship at the University of Virginia, followed by a Forensic Pathology fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Jarrell has completed medical missions in Zambia, Honduras, Peru, and Tanzania.
Dr. Jarrell is certified by the American Board of Pathology in Anatomic Pathology, Neuropathology, and Forensic Pathology. She is a member of NAME (National Association of Medical Examiners) and the AAFS (American Academy of Forensic Sciences).
Lauren E. Dvorscak, MD
Lauren E. Dvorscak, MD, Assistant Chief Medical Investigator, Director, Forensic Pathology Fellowship Program, received her undergraduate degree from Indiana University-Northwest and her medical degree from Indiana University School of Medicine. She completed a pathology residency at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center and a fellowship in forensic pathology at the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator.
Dr. Dvorscak is board certified by the American Board of Pathology in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology. She is a member of multiple professional organizations including NAME (National Association of Medical Examiners) and AAFS (American Academy of Forensic Sciences). Her research interests include sudden, unexplained infant death.
Kristan Abernathy, MD
Degree: MD from University of South Carolina SOM, Greenville, SC
AP/CP Residency: University of Virginia
Allison Hade, DO
Degree: DO from Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine
AP/CP Residency: The University of New Mexico, School of Medicine
Cassie MacRae, MD
Degree: MD from the Royal College of Surgeons (Ireland)
AP/CP Residency: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
David Negrete, MD
Degree: MD from Loma Linda University School of Medicine
AP/CP Residency: Cedars Sinai Medical Center
“The New Mexico OMI was my top choice for forensic fellowship training, and I feel extremely fortunate to have been selected as one of the four fellows in my class. The diversity of cases and breadth of OMI faculty expertise (neuropathology, forensic odontology, forensic radiology, epidemiology, to name a few) made for an intensely educational year. While most of my training was conducted in the old OMI facility, having been in the new facility I can attest that they provide top-notch accommodations for current fellows. Training under a centralized medical examiner system afforded me the unique opportunity to become involved in statewide research collaborations (e.g. with the NM Dept. of Health) and to understand the importance of mortality statistics/tracking in a way that I otherwise would not have. To this day, the New Mexico OMI serves as my model of what a well-run forensic fellowship and death investigative system should be.”
"I thoroughly enjoyed my time at the OMI. Being a centralized office for a state-wide medicolegal death investigation system kept the case load quite varied and interesting. As with most great medical examiner offices, the OMI’s strength was in its people; I felt like I was getting instruction from some of the best in the field, and in the form of Dr. Zumwalt, a forensic pathology legend. I also thought that the close relationship with the UNM hospital provided some useful interaction with the non-forensic medical staff when investigating challenging natural deaths. One of the opportunities that stands out to me was when I was able to testify in a Grand Jury hearing on a case I had performed early in my fellowship. Fellows rarely get the opportunity to testify and I felt fortunate to experience the witness stand for myself during my training. Beyond the educational experience, I was pleasantly surprised by Albuquerque, and New Mexico as a whole. I developed such an affinity for the area, I have returned almost every year to take my family skiing and to enjoy the wonderful food and sights that New Mexico has to offer. "
- Merrill Hines, MD
| Year | Fellow | Position After Training |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-2023 | Brittany DePasquale, MD | Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, PA |
| 2022-2023 | Kimberly Johnson, MD | Georgia Bureau of Investigation |
| 2022-2023 | Harley Schainost, MD | Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center. KS |
| 2022-2023 | Natalie Taylor, MD | Dane County Medical Examiner’s Office, WI |
| 2022-2023 | Audra Kerwin, MD | Assistant Professor, University of New Mexico, Office of the Medical Investigator |
| 2021 - 2022 | Daniel Gallego, MD | Assistant Professor, University of New Mexico, Office of the Medical Investigator |
| 2021 - 2022 | Michael Harrell, MD | Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Officer, CA |
| 2021 - 2022 | Aidan Kerr, MD | Assistant Professor, University of New Mexico, Office of the Medical Investigator |
| 2021 - 2022 | Jolee Suddock, DO | Neuropathology Fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles |
| 2020 - 2021 | Carolin Boecking, MD | Pediatric Pathology Fellow, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA |
| 2020 - 2021 | Paul Yell, MD | Medical Examiner, North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Raleigh, NC |
| 2020 - 2021 | Zoe Sundell, MD | Armed Forces Medical Examiner, Dover, DE |
| 2020 - 2021 | Emily Helmrich, DO | Assistant Professor, University of New Mexico, Office of the Medical Investigator |
| 2019 - 2020 | Nicole Jackson, MD | Assistant Medical Examiner, Cook County Office fo the Chief Medical Examiner, Chicago, IL |
| 2019 - 2020 | Ben Murie, MD | Medical Examiner, Clark County Office of the Medical Investigator, NV |
| 2019 - 2020 | Catherine Nicka, MD | Pathologist, Private Practice, CA |
| 2019 - 2020 | Karen Zeigler, MD | Office of the San Francisco Medical Examiner, CA |
| 2018 - 2019 | Henry McNett, MD | Washoe County Co. Regional Medical Examiner’s Office, NV |
| 2018 - 2019 | Lindsay Taute, MD | Cook County Medical Examiner, IL |
| 2018 - 2019 | Andrew Guajardo, MD | Office of the Medical Examiner, UT |
| 2017 - 2018 | Christopher Liverman, MD, PhD | Med Hennepin County Medical Examiner, MN |
| 2017 - 2018 | Anne Hoffa, MD | Onondaga Co. Medical Examiner's Office, NY |
| 2017 - 2018 | Mark Giffen, DO | Wake Forest Baptist Health Dept. of Pathology, NC |
| 2016 - 2017 | Rebecca Asch-Kendrick, MD | Midwest Medical Examiner, Ramsey, MN |
| 2016 - 2017 | Lauren Edelman, MD | Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office, Austin, TX |
| 2016 - 2017 | Lauren Decker, MD | Cook County Medical Examiner, Chicago, IL |
| 2016 - 2017 | Kacy Krehbiel, MD | Utah Office of the Medical Examiner, Taylorsville, UT |
| 2015 - 2016 | Lauren Dvorscak, MD | Assistant Professor, Clinician Educator, Forensic Pathology, UNM, Albuquerque, NM |
| 2014 - 2015 | Nika Aljinovic, MD | Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner Office |
| 2014 - 2015 | Angela Miller, MD | Forensic Pathologist, Moncton Hospital, University of Manitoba, Canada |
| 2014 - 2015 | Jason Morin, MD | New Mexico Department of Health, Scientific Laboratory Division, Albuquerque, NM |
| 2013 - 2014 | Udey Ukpo, MD | Pathologist, Los Angeles, CA |
| 2013 - 2014 | Leslie Hamilton, MD | Assistant Professor, University of Calgary, Alberta Canada |
| 2013 - 2014 | Deidre Amaro, MD | Forensic Pathologist, Shasta County Coroner's Office, California |
| 2013 - 2014 | Linda Szymansky | Assistant Professor, Director of Autopsy and Perinatal Pathology, Children's Hospital, Los Angeles, CA |
| 2012 - 2013 | Cecilia Wu, MD | Assistant Chief Medical Examiner, Medical Examiner Unit, Justice and Solicitor General, California |
| 2012 - 2013 | Katherine Callahan, MD | Medical Examiner, Travis County, Austin, TX |
| 2012 - 2013 | Mario Rascon, MD | Chief Medical Examiner, State Office of the Medical Examiner, El Paso County, Texas |
| 2012 - 2013 | Benjamin Scariano, MD | Assisstant Medical Examiner at Cook County Office of the Medical Examiner |
| 2011 - 2012 | Rebecca Wilcoxon, MD | University of Iowa, 200 Hawkins Dr., Iowa City, IA 52242 |
| 2011 - 2012 | Lori |
Assistant Professor, UNM Pathology, OMI, Albuquerque NM |
| 2011 - 2012 | Hannah Kastenbaum, MD | Associate Medical Examiner at City of Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office, Pennsylvania |
| 2010 - 2011 | John Burns, MD | Forensic Pathology, Honolulu, HI |
| 2010 - 2011 | Nadia Granger, MD | Volunteer Faculty, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center |
| 2010 - 2011 | Katie Lindstrom, MD | Boston University, School of Medicine, Boston, MA |
| 2010 - 2011 | Julie Schrader (Adams), MD | Washoe County Office of the Medical Examiner, Reno, Nevada |
| 2009 - 2010 | Alice Briones, MD | Director, Armed Forces Medical Examiner System, Dover Air Force Base, Delaware |
| 2009 - 2010 | Erin Brooks, MD | Associate Professor of Pathology at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics |
| 2009 - 2010 | Christopher Lochmuller, MD | Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine |
| 2009 - 2010 | Allen Mock, MD | West Virginia State Department of Health and Human Resources, Chief Medical Examiner, Bureau for Public Health |
| 2008 - 2009 | Lisa Gavin (De Franco), MD | Clark County Coroner's Office, Nevada |
| 2008 - 2009 | Lorren Jackson, MD | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Hennepin County Medical Center, University of Minnesota |
| 2008 - 2009 | Scott Kipper | Deputy Medical Examiner, Regional Forensic Science Center, Sedgwick County, Kansas |
| 2008 - 2009 | Clarissa Krinsky, MD | Assistant Professor, UNM Department of Pathology, TriCore Reference Laboratories |
| 2007 - 2008 | Ann Bracey, MD | Dallas/Fort Worth, University of North Texas, Medical Laboratory Sciences, Library Sciences |
| 2007 - 2008 | Carol Lee, MD | Forensic Pathology Science Section Chair, The British Columbia Association of Laboratory Physicians (BCALP) |
| 2007 - 2008 | Karen Cline-Parhamovich, MD | Pierce County Chief Medical Examiner |
| 2007 - 2008 | Veena Singh, MD | Anoka County Office of the Medical Investigator, Minnesota |
| 2007 - 2008 | Tim Williams, MD | Program Director of Clinical Fellowships, University of Washington |
| 2007 - 2008 | Kazuki Harada, MD | National Defense Medical College, Japan |
| 2006 - 2007 | Laura Knight, MD | Deputy Chief Medical Examiner, Washoe County Medical Examiner-Coroner's Office, Reno, NV |
| 2006 - 2007 | Othon Mena, MD | Assistant Chief Medical Examiner, Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office |
| 2006 - 2007 | Sam Andrews, MD | Chief Medical Examiner, Lubbock County (retired 2019) |
| 2005 - 2006 | Merrill Hines, MD | Assistant Medical Examiner, Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, Houston, TX |
| 2005 - 2006 | Wieslawa Tlomak, MD | Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office |
| 2004 - 2005 | Russell Alexander, MD | Assistant Medical Examiner, Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Baltimore, MD |
| 2004 - 2005 | Ian Paul, MD | Forensic Pathology Fellowship Program Director, UNM HSC, Department of Pathology (retired 2020) |
| 2003 - 2004 | Kelly Lear-Kaul, MD | Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center; Coroner Staff at the Arapahoe County Coroner and Medical Examiner |
| 2003 - 2004 | Ellen Moffatt, MD | Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, San Francisco |
| 2003 - 2004 | Ross Reichard, MD | Vice Chair of Quality, Associate Chair of Practice, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic Laboratories |
| 2002 - 2003 | Sean Kelly, MD | Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Forensic Medicine, New York University, Langone Health |
| 2002 - 2003 | Joseph O'Hara, MD | Medical Examiner, Santa Clara County Office of the Medical Examiner-Coroner |
| 2002 - 2003 | Michael Smith, MD | Summit Pathology, Ivinson Memorial Hospital, Loveland, CO |
| 2001 - 2002 | Larry Czarnecki, MD | Coconino County Medical Examiner |
| 2001 - 2002 | Michael Markey, MD | Sparrow Hospital, Lansing, MI |
| 2001 - 2002 | Gayle Suzuki, MD | Office of the Medical Examiner, Western District, Roanoke County, Virginia |
| 2000 - 2001 | Dean Havlik, MD | Forensic Staff, Private Practice, Grand Junction, CO |
| 2000 - 2001 | Kevin Horn, MD | Medical Examiner and Forensic Pathology, Maricopa County OMI, Associate Member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Member of the National Association of Medical Examiners |
| 2000 - 2001 | Beth Wright, MD | Expert Pathologist, Private Practice |
| 1999 - 2000 | Patricia Aronica-Pollak, MD | |
| 1999 - 2000 | Dennis Klein, MD | State Medical Examiner, State of Iowa |
| 1999 - 2000 | Charles Lee, MD | Chief Forensic Pathologist, Licking County, OH |
| 1998 - 1999 | Caroline Dignan, MD | Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center |
| 1998 - 1999 | Amy Hart, MD | Chief Medical Investigator, San Francisco, CA (now retired) |
| 1998 - 1999 | Jerri McLemore | Associate Professor, Wake Forest Baptist Health, Department of Pathology, NC |
| 1997 - 1998 | Pauline Alakija, MD | Clinical Professor, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Alberta, Chair, Governance Committee, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, Past President, Misericordia Medical Staff Association |
| 1997 - 1998 | David Winston, MD | Forensic Pathologist, Pima County, University of Arizona Health Sciences, College of Medicine |
Currently accepting applications for fellowship year 2025 – 2026. This year our program will participate in MATCH for fellowship selection through NMRP. Applicants must register with NMRP during the application process for consideration. Interviews will take place in Fall 2023. To apply, submit:
The dates for the 2024 Forensic Pathology Fellowship Match for 2025 appointment are:
Lauren Dvorscak, M.D.
Deputy Chief Medical Investigator
Director, Forensic Pathology Fellowship
New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator
MSC 07-4040
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001
Phone: 505-272-5212
NM OMI website: http://omi.unm.edu/