Cook County has new chief medical examiner

CHICAGO (AP) - Cook County's interim chief medical examiner has been approved for the permanent position.

The appointment of Dr. Ponni Arunkumar by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle was approved Wednesday by the county's Board of Commissioners.

Arunkumar had been serving as interim chief since June. Before that, she served as Deputy Chief Medical Examiner since September 2012. She began working for the county in 1999 during an anatomic and clinical pathology residency program at Cook County Hospital, now Stroger Hospital.

Preckwinkle calls Arunkumar a leader at the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office who played a key role in the office receiving accreditation earlier this year from the National Association of Medical Examiners.

Arunkumar succeeds Dr. Stephen Cina, who recently resigned and is moving out of the area.