El Paso County Coroner 2024 report: Suicides, accidental overdoses decline, traffic deaths rise

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – El Paso County saw a decrease in suicides and drug-related deaths last year, but an increase in traffic deaths, according to a 2024 annual report released by the El Paso County Coroner's Office on Tuesday.

"Although the 2024 report features multiple positive data points, it is important to remember that the individuals represented in this report are each grieved by family and friends," Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Emily Russell-Kinsley said.

According to the report, the coroner's office investigated 6,310 deaths in 2024 – up 4.5% from the previous year – and performed 1,216 autopsies, a 22% decline that officials attribute to fewer out-of-county requests following a mass recovery of remains in Fremont County in 2023.

Of county autopsies, 38.5% were natural causes, 36.4% were accidents, 17.9% were suicides, and 5.9% were homicides, according to the report.

The county experienced a downward trend in accidental deaths over the past two years, the office reports, with a nearly 17% decrease in accidental deaths and a 27% reduction in accidental drug overdose deaths. Fentanyl deaths in particular diminished by 44% from the prior year, according to the report.

However, there was a massive 33.9% increase in fatal motor vehicle accidents from 2023 to 2024. In 41% of those deaths, reckless driving and/or excessive speed were considered the primary cause of the crash, the coroner's office said. Motorcycles accounted for 41% of traffic deaths in 2024.

The county saw a substantial drop in suicides over the last year, down almost 18% from 2023, with youth suicides dropping a massive 60%.

Meanwhile, homicides held steady with 51 total cases in El Paso County in 2024, up just one from the year before. 71% of those deaths involved firearms, the coroner's office said.

The coroner's office said it investigated 86 deaths among unhoused individuals in 2024, a 25% decrease from 2023. Drug deaths in this group declined sharply, falling by 37%, though hypothermia cases held steady, the office found.

Financially, the office operated on a $4.8 million budget, costing county residents about $5.61 per person per year.

Click here to view the full 2024 annual report.

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