Twin Falls County Coroner Gene Turley has submitted his resignation after months of suffering from serious health problems.
County Commissioner Don Hall said he was given a letter of resignation on Thursday.
“While he knew it was necessary, it was still a very difficult and emotional decision for him to submit his formal resignation as the Twin Falls County coroner,” wrote Turley’s daughter, Angela Turley Heider, on social media.
“He loved his job and has served our county for many, many years. He put his heart and soul into his work.”
With the letter of resignation, the county's Republican Central Committee met Wednesday and nominated three people as possible replacements, their names to be forwarded on to county commissioners. They had 15 days from the day of Turley's resignation to do so.
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Going into the meeting, the committee had received just one application but two others cast their names in the hat. The three to be nominated are Will Carson, the present chief deputy; Jared Sweesy, who retired from law enforcement in September; and Krista Smith, who formerly worked for the St. Louis County medical examiner's office in Missouri.
The committee approved all three nominees after hearing brief introductions but will forward the names to county commissioners with no order of preference, something that has been done in the past.
All three county commissioners attended Wednesday's meeting and now have 15 days to pick from the candidates.
“It is a tight turnaround,” Hall said.
Carson has been running the coroner's office in Turley’s absence.
TWIN FALLS — Gene Turley has a plan to improve services and save taxpayers money.
Hall said whoever replaces Turley will need to have the specialization to perform the duties of office, including determining the manner and cause of deaths that occur under varying circumstances.
Turley is suffering from a fungal condition that spread to his brain and cannot be cured, Heider said.
“He just keeps on fighting,” she said.
Turley served as coroner from 1993 to 2001, then resigned. He ran again and was elected to the office in 2014.
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