Lakshmi Kode Sammarco, MD has been the Hamilton County Coroner since 2012. By training, Dr. Sammarco is a board certified neuroradiologist who has been in clinical practice since 1995. Previous employment experience includes faculty neuroradiology positions at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the University of Maryland Medical School in Baltimore and the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. In Cincinnati, she has worked as a radiologist at local hospitals before starting her own subspecialty services company.
With her extensive experience in radiology, Dr. Sammarco introduced the idea of "virtual autopsies” during the planning phase of our new Coroner's office and Crime Laboratory. The new building now has a CT scanner as well as Plain X-ray capability. The additional imaging technology and Dr. Sammarco's expertise have significantly enhanced this office's forensic investigation capability.
Dr. Sammarco was raised and educated in Cincinnati. She attended the Clifton Elementary School and Cincinnati Country Day School where she graduated early at age 17. She then entered the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering as their youngest student to have been granted a junior position. At UC, Dr. Sammarco was an active part of the Caducea Premedical Society, the Honors Student Association and the Mideastern Honors Association and a committee member of the McMicken Honors Society. After only 2 years, Dr. Sammarco was offered admission to the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine where she completed her Medical Degree. At age 24 she was the youngest graduate in her class. Dr. Sammarco completed her residency in Diagnostic Radiology at Case Western Reserve University - MetroHealth Medical Center in 1993. In 1995 she completed the two-year accredited fellowship in Neuroradiology at the University of California Los Angeles, one of the most prestigious neuroradiology fellowships in the world. During this time, Dr. Sammarco was involved in the development of many of the minimally invasive procedures to treat strokes, aneurysms, AVMs, and cancers of the brain and spine currently used today. She is currently a senior member of the American Society of Neuroradiology.
Dr. Sammarco is a dynamic and energetic woman who is actively involved in the local community. She is involved with the Hindu Temple and the local Indian cultural programs. She is also involved with several of our major league sports teams' community outreach programs. She volunteers speaking to middle and high school students about education and career choices. She is a volunteer at the UC College of Medicine, helping to select our future doctors.
Dr. Sammarco is married to Dr. Vincent James Sammarco, MD, and has two children. They are a "Cincinnati" family and regularly attend the local arts and Reds, Bengals and FCC games. Her interests include photography, traveling, gardening, and playing with their pet parrots. She is an active athlete and enjoys skiing, yoga, fitness classes and high-performance driving events.
Within Hamilton County are a number of major hospitals and trauma centers serving the tri-state area. The county is also home to the Shriners Burns Institute which deals with patients from across the country. Consequently, there are numerous deaths in Hamilton County each year wherein the precipitating incident leading to death occurred outside Hamilton County, but the death falls under the jurisdiction of the Hamilton County Coroner. Thus, the statistics appearing in this Annual Report do not necessarily agree with numbers reported by police agencies throughout the county.
The Hamilton County Coroner's office is in reality a regional facility which provides forensic services to surrounding counties on a fee-for-service basis. These services include autopsies, firearms examination, serology, toxicology and others.
An "accidental death" is a result of an unnatural cause where there is no evidence of intent to cause harm.
A death inflicted by another person with explicit or implicit intent to harm. A homicide is not necessarily a murder. The person responsible for causing the injuries may be charged in connection with the death or the prosecuting attorney may decline to file charges in certain circumstances.
A natural death is one due to a spontaneous or naturally occurring disease or degenerative process.
A death so classified usually falls under the jurisdiction of the coroner because of the sudden or unexpected nature of the death, because there was no physician with knowledge or awareness of the decedent's condition, or when circumstances surrounding the death arouse suspicion. It should be stressed that the natural deaths investigated by the coroner's office may not be representative of all natural deaths in the general population, because these jurisdictional considerations introduce a significant sampling bias. Diligent search for medical history can often result in death certification by a knowledgeable physician, rather than by a government agency.
A suicide is a death resulting from a self-inflicted injury which was the result of an explicit or implicit purpose to end one's life.
"Undetermined" is the ruling applied when sufficient evidence or information cannot be adduced, usually about intent, to assign a manner of death.
4477 Carver Woods Dr - Blue Ash, OH 45242
(513) 946-8730
8am-4pm Mon-Fri
(513) 946-8772
Hamilton County Coroner & Crime Laboratory
Dr. Lakshmi Kode Sammarco
(513) 946-8700