PLUMMER, Idaho – Attorneys for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe has been granted a temporary restraining order against Kootenai County Coroner Warren Keene to stop an autopsy on a tribal member.
The family will now be able to take Olivia Pakootas' body to their funeral home until the full hearing which is set for Thursday.
Idaho State Police said Pakootas, 21, was killed in a crash on June 1 on Highway 58 near Worley. Officials said Pakootas was travelling westbound when she failed to negotiate a curve and hit a guardrail. They said she left the roadway and overturned in a field. Authorities said Pakootas was ejected from the car and was not wearing a seatbelt.
Tribal officials said under Idaho state law, the coroner can decline to perform an autopsy for religious and cultural reasons. Tribal leaders said there is no criminal investigation and there is no reason for the autopsy to take place against the wishes of the family. They also said because Pakootas is a Coeur d’Alene Tribal member, there are no jurisdictional reasons to proceed with an autopsy because the accident happened on the reservation.
Tribal leaders said Pakootas’ family has expressed their desire for the coroner’s office to return her body to them without an invasive autopsy as it is a clear violation of their cultural traditions and their religious beliefs.
Pakootas was a star player on the Tekoa-Oakesdale girls’ basketball team. During her time there, they reached the WIAA 1B title game in 2014.