WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas – This week, the Williamson County District Court approved a $635.1 million budget that will add nearly 50 new jobs to the county, including four new death investigators.

“Basically, it goes like this: Someone dies, and under Texas law, there is a criminal investigation under that death investigation that is conducted by local law enforcement, like the sheriff’s office or maybe a municipal police department, but a justice of the peace is the only person who can sign the death certificate to determine cause and manner of death,” says Williamson County Judge Bill Gravell.

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Williamson County Judge Bill Gravell says the current justice of the peace has conducted nearly 1,100 death investigations this year.

“This has been a tremendous stress on our justices of the peace who have been on their feet literally 24 hours a day trying to deal with the deaths and the dying and then suddenly turning around, putting on a robe and standing in the courtroom. Our death investigators will be able to come to the scene, report to the justice of the peace and gather the necessary information,” says Judge Gravell.

The Williamson County judge says more than $300,000 has been budgeted for the death investigator positions that have not yet been filled.

“When we start the death investigators’ work, it will be a 24-hour job on day one, so our goal is to start in October and be fully operational by January 1. I also hope that our death investigators will have the opportunity to meet and talk to the families,” says Judge Gravell.