I learned the sad news this morning: Dr. Donald Reay, (or Doc Reay, or just Don; they were all fine with him), legendary Chief Medical Examiner in King County passed away last night.
Reay was a nationally recognized Forensic Pathologist, but just a regular guy at the same time. Teaching those who wanted to learn about death, (like me) was something he loved to do. He was a legend in his own time, and I owe a lot of what I know to him.
The Passing of a Legend
Published inBlog Posts
Don was the answer to the success of the King county Medical Examiners Office. Prior to his appointment we had Dr. Bessant-Mathews in charge. When I was a Lt in charge of homicide in the King County Sheriff’s Office I attended every homicide in King County. I witnessed several incidents where ME deputies were showing up drunk on crime scenes, the ME allowing an 18 year kid to take post mortem photos of a victim that later did not turn out, An ME employee washing a body down in the morgue prior any attempt to scan for trace evidence and finally during a meeting at the ME’s office with Mathews where he wanted to use Denise Naslund’s skull as a prop during an interview on a channel 4 news cast to emphasize his need for a new air conditioning system in the old morgue when it was on Queen Anne hill. We talked him out of it for obvious reasons. I documented all of this and informed my captain. One day he said that that a King county councilwoman had been hearing things about the ME’s office so knowing that had my report he sent me up to her office. I reviewed the report with her and before she left she asked me who I would recommend for the ME’s Office in the event that the present one was replaced. I told unquestionably that I would recommend Dr. Donald Rhey. I went back to my office to report what I had told the councilwoman, Bernice Stern, to my Capt. He was out of the office so I went to his boss and made my report. After I was done the boss, a chief went off like a scud missile berating me for what I had been instructed to do. Being the politician that he was he told me in a very unfriendly manner that there were “more ways to skin a cat” apparently sensing political repercussions if this story got out. I heard that Waldt had the same reaction as the chief when he heard about it. I told him that telling the truth sure as hell wasn’t a way to resolve problems in the adminsration in King County and walked out of his office. Two weeks later Don was appointed to lead the office.
When we found 3 victims of Ridgway, two in and one near the Green River in August 1982 I was a major in charge of CID. When I responded to the scene I called Don and informed him about what we had. He was there in a flash interrupting his vacation. He and I were on the ropes tied to the gurney’s that held the victim’s bodies that we pulled up to the top of the steep river bank. Before he retired he was elected as the top #1 Medical Examiner in the country by the Medical Examiner’s Assoc..
You are exactly correct, Dick.
I found this response to be interesting when I inquired about the number of unsolved homicide cases that SPD had on record adding to the over 250,000 unsolved homicide cases in this country that are still open.
” Dick kRASKE
kraskedi@comcast.net
RE: Public Disclosure Request#: P057564-050420
Dear Dick kRASKE,
Your request seeks information or asks questions and does not identify specific public records.
As such it is not a request for identifiable public records.
The Public Records Act (PRA) requires agencies to respond to requests for “identifiable public records.” RCW 42.56.080. An agency has no duty under the PRA to respond to questions, explain records, do research, or to create or produce a record that does not exist.” Bonamy v. City of Seattle, 92 Wn. App. 403, 410, 960 P.2d 447 (1998), review denied, 137 Wn.2d 1012, 978 P.2d 1099 (1999); Sperr v. City of Spokane, 123 Wn. App. 132, 136-37, 96 P.3d 1012(2004); Smith v. Okanagan County, 100 Wn. App. 7, 22, 994 P.2d 857 (2000).
SPD does not keep a list of unsolved homicides. Please clarify the specific public records you are requesting. Once you have provided clarification, then we are able to further respond to your request. If we do not hear from you within 30 days, we will consider your request closed.
Thank you,
Lara Malanca
If you have any questions, you may send a message using the Police Records Request Center or call the Public Disclosure Desk at 206-684-5481.
Sincerely,
Larissa Malanca
Seattle Police Department
Legal Unit “