At its most recent meeting, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners named Dr. Karen E. Sullivan as the permanent Fulton County Medical Examiner. Dr. Sullivan has served in multiple capacities in the office since 2003, most recently as the Interim Medical Examiner since February 2020.

“Dr. Sullivan has proven herself in several roles within the Medical Examiner’s Office for nearly two decades,” say Fulton County Manager Dick Anderson. “In that time, our citizens have been well served by her professionalism and deep base of knowledge in her field.”

Dr. Sullivan joined the Office of the Medical Examiner in 2003 as an Associate Medical Examiner. Prior to serving as the Interim Medical Examiner, Dr. Sullivan was the Deputy Chief Medical Examiner beginning in 2016. She is considered a respected authority in the field of pathology having worked as Assistant Professor of Pathology at both the Morehouse and Emory Schools of Medicine. 
Dr. Karen Sullivan is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a BS in Zoology. Following her college graduation, Dr. Sullivan taught high school Science in the Fulton County Schools before attending medical school. Her postgraduate work includes an MS in Anatomy from the University of Georgia and a Medical Doctorate from Morehouse School of Medicine. She completed a residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at Emory University and a fellowship in Forensic Pathology at the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office in conjunction with Emory University.