CORONER (Lat. coronator, corona, a crown), a very ancient officer in England, at the common law. He is mentioned in a charter of king Athelstan, 005 A.D; and the office, like much of the common law, is acknowledged to be of Saxon origin. The name is derived from the fact, that the C. has chietry to do with pleas of the crown. In this light, the lord chief-justice of the queen's bench is the principal O. in the kingdom, and may exercise jurisdiction in that capacity in any part of England. There are, however, particular coroners for every place in England, and in some counties, three or four, or even more. They were formerly paid by fees on each inquest, but now (23 and 24 Vict. c. 116) by salary 'paid out of the county rate. The C. is chosen for life, and the election rests with the freeholders of the county or district. A C. may, however, be dismissed by the lord chancellor for inability or misbehavior in his office. By the statute of West minster the first (3 Edw. I. c. 10), it was enacted that none should be chosen but lawful and discreet knights; and in the time of Edward III., there is an instance of a man being removed from the office because he was merely a merchant. Subsequently, it was thought sufficient if a man had lands enough to entitle him to be made a knight; and Blackstone' omplains thiff in his time it had come to be sought for the perquisites, and not for the honor of serving the country. This motive has now ceased. The C. is now usually a professional man, frequently an attorney or a medical man.
The office of C. is to some extent the only one in England charged with the investi gation of crime. Where the C. cannot act, there is no authority to examine witnesses until a suspected person has been actually charged or accused before a magistrate. But even the C.'s duties are very limited, and little is added to the statute 3 Edw. I. The C. can inquire only into the causes of violent or sudden death, and into these only when the body has been found. When such a death happens, it is the duty of the constable to give notice of it to the C., who then summons a jury from the body of the county. tor the purpose of making an inquisition into the matter. The 0. presides over the inqui sition, and the court thus constituted is a court of record. The jury consists of twelve men at least, who are sworn and charged by the C.; and the vcrilict must be of twelve. By 6 and 7 Vict. c. 12, it has been enacted that the inquest shall be held before the C.
in whose district the body shall be " lying dead." If any be found guiPty by such inqui sition of murder or other homicide, the C. is to commit them to prison for further trial, and is also to make inquiry concerning their lands, goods, and chattels (which are for feited thereby), if not otherwise known; and he must., moreover, certify the whole of this inquisition under his own seal and the seals of the jurors, together with the evidence thereon, to the court of queen's bench or the next assizes. The accused may thereupon be put on his trial without other indictment. By 6 and 7 Will. IV. c. 89, the C. is empowered to summon, and by 1 Viet c. 68, to pay, medical witnesses, in place of refer ring them for payment to the church-wardens. The sums allowed are one guinea for a simple examination, and two guineas if a post-mortem examination of the body has been made. By 6 and 7 Vict. c. 83, coroners are empowered to appoint deputies in case of absence from illness or other reasonable cause. 9 and 10 Viet. C. 37, regulates the duties of the C. and the expenses of inquests in Ireland. Another branch of the C.'s office is to inquire concerning shipwrecks and treasure-trove; but this has been nearly superseded by the provisions of the merchant shipping act, 1854. He is a conservator of the king's peace, in which capacity he is mentioned in one of the oldest treatises on the common law (Mirror, c. 1, s. 3). As such, lie may cause felons to be apprehended, whether an inqui sition has found them guilty or not. The C. has likewise ministerial functions as the sheriff's substitute, in executing process in suits in which the sheriff is related either to the plaintiff or defendant. Latterly, the office of C. has been the subject of considera tion, with a view to certain reforms of administration. In many cases, it is alleged that the C. makes a job of his office, trumps up cases, and acts vexatiously at variance with the warrants of magistrates. Coroners or crowners, as they were also called in England, are mentioned in many old Scottish statutes; and there is no doubt that the office, as well as that of alderman and mayor, existed in those parts of the country that were peopled by persons of Teutonic race. But it was abolished or fell into desuetude, prob ably in consequence of the secession war and the French connection; and in Scotland the duties are now chiefly performed by an officer appointed by the crown, styled the procurator-fiscal (q.v).