OOR orders new search for York County coroner records on unclaimed decedents
OOR ordered another search for York County coroner records on unclaimed decedents, finding the office had not adequately supported its no-records claim.
Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records has ordered the York County Coroner’s Office to conduct a new search for records about unclaimed decedents, finding that the office had not adequately supported its claim that responsive records did not exist. The October 20 ruling granted John Plesic’s appeal. [S1, pp. 5–6]
Plesic’s August 31 request sought existing case files, logs, intake records and related entries for unclaimed decedents with dates of death from January 1, 2024, onward. He asked for identifying information to the extent it was already contained in those records, with a preference for an existing spreadsheet or database export. [S1, p. 1]
The coroner’s office said it did not track the requested information in its case management system and could not generate the requested report. Its attestation also disputed the relevance of six examples Plesic submitted from the federal NamUs database. [S1, pp. 2, 4]
The OOR identified an unresolved problem with that explanation: the office said it generated View of Body reports when the county paid for cremation of an unclaimed decedent. Its public reporting also included unclaimed-decedent totals and county-paid cremation statistics. The office did not answer the OOR’s request to explain why the View of Body reports would fall outside the request. [S1, pp. 3–5]
Appeals Officer Bandy L. Jarosz concluded that the evidence did not demonstrate a search reasonably calculated to uncover all relevant documents. The ruling directs the office to search for the View of Body reports and records underlying information published on its website. [S1, pp. 5–6]
Within 30 days, the office must supply responsive records or, if its search finds none, an affidavit or verified statement describing the search and affirming that result. The ruling does not require the creation of nonexistent records. [S1, p. 6]
The decision concerns the adequacy of the search and the evidence supporting the denial. It does not establish that a particular spreadsheet exists or that records have since been released. Compliance and any subsequent court appeal have not been independently verified.
Official sources
- S1: John Plesic v. York County Coroner’s Office — AP 2026-3818; 2026-10-20. Archived official PDF.
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