NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — A local coroner who announced Tuesday that she would be resigning from her position has now announced that she has changed her mind.
Newton County Coroner Dorothea Bailey-Butts announced Wednesday that she was “withdrawing her resignation.”
In a Facebook post, she made “PSA” alerting the community that because they had voted her into office, she has made the decision to stay in the position.
PSA..... I have decided that I am not going to resign as Newton County Coroner. I am withdrawing my resignation...
Posted by Bailey-Butts Dorothea on Wednesday, May 26, 2021
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Bailey-Butts is the first woman of color to serve as Newton County’s coroner. In her initial post, she claimed that many of the “scandals and issues” surrounding her office stem from the fact that she is Black and that “they are intimidated by my capacity, knowledge, and experience.”
Bailey-Butts’ time in office has not been without controversy. In February, County Manager Lloyd Kerr drafted a petition to have her removed from office.
[RELATED: Metro coroner says county setting her up to fail after allegations she refused to move bodies]
Newton County officials claimed Bailey-Butts refused to transport bodies and even disrespected grieving families. The county said Bailey-Butts has asked a hotel worker to help her with a body and even told firefighters it’s not her job to remove a body. She denies all of these allegations.
She ended her post withdrawing her resignation by saying, “I apologize for the inconvenience.”
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