I’ve Investigated Over 5,500 Deaths | Minutes With
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Barbara Butcher investigated around 5,500 deaths for New York City's Office of Chief Medical Examiner, including 680 homicides. She was one of the first women to do the job, and she worked through the aftermath of 9/11.
In this episode of Minutes With, Barbara looks back on a career spent working out how people died. She was turned away from the police because she wore glasses, worked as a physician assistant, and eventually found her way to the medical examiner's office after a career counsellor suggested she become either a poultry vet or a coroner.
Barbara explains how she earned respect from the detectives who dismissed her, why she never calls a death a homicide until she's seen the scene for herself, and how she reads the "choreography of murder". She talks about the strange and tragic deaths unique to New York City, the cases that stayed with her, and what it was like to come face to face with serial killers, including Arohn Kee.
She also recalls the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. She wasn't in the city that morning, and the colleagues who went in her place were injured in the collapse. In the weeks that followed, she worked to identify the victims. Barbara speaks openly about the PTSD that followed and the therapy that helped her recover. She also shares the most important lesson Dr Charles Hirsch taught her about telling families the truth, and why she doesn't fear death.
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In this episode of Minutes With, Barbara looks back on a career spent working out how people died. She was turned away from the police because she wore glasses, worked as a physician assistant, and eventually found her way to the medical examiner's office after a career counsellor suggested she become either a poultry vet or a coroner.
Barbara explains how she earned respect from the detectives who dismissed her, why she never calls a death a homicide until she's seen the scene for herself, and how she reads the "choreography of murder". She talks about the strange and tragic deaths unique to New York City, the cases that stayed with her, and what it was like to come face to face with serial killers, including Arohn Kee.
She also recalls the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. She wasn't in the city that morning, and the colleagues who went in her place were injured in the collapse. In the weeks that followed, she worked to identify the victims. Barbara speaks openly about the PTSD that followed and the therapy that helped her recover. She also shares the most important lesson Dr Charles Hirsch taught her about telling families the truth, and why she doesn't fear death.
👀 Welcome to LADbible Stories - the home of raw interviews, real people, and powerful documentaries. From Minutes With and The Meet, to the brutally honest Honesty Box, we shine a light on untold human experiences. Subscribe now for content that moves you.
📲 Subscribe to LADbible Stories: @ladbiblestories
📺 Want more from the LADbible universe?
LADbible Entertainment: @ladbible
SPORTbible: @SPORTbible
