John R. Feegel M.D. J.D.

Family-Placed Death Notice

John R. Feegel, MD, JD, MPH, 70, doctor, lawyer, professor, and author of Tampa, FL, died Monday, September 15, 2003. John R. Feegel, MD, was a board-certified forensic pathologist and the founding Chief of the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner's Office in 1973 and later served as the Associate Chief Medical Examiner for Atlanta. He also served the community of Tampa as a leading personal injury attorney for 3 decades. He was a committed professor of medical and legal studies at University of Tampa and the University of South Florida, and a tireless graduate student of archeology, public health policy, bio-medical ethics, Western philosophy and religion. The cause was cancer. Dr. Feegel was a graduate of Holy Cross College (Class of 1954), a former Jesuit seminarian and was a highly accomplished author of more than 8 murder mystery novels, including Autopsy, published in 1975, and for which he was awarded the coveted Edgar award for best novel of the year by the Mystery Writers of America. Dr. Feegel was born in 1932 in Middletown, CT, and after medical school in Ottawa and law school in Denver, he settled his family in southern Florida to practice in the late 1960's. He lived and worked in the Tampa Bay area for the majority of his adult life. A devoted Roman Catholic, a committed scholar of Mayan artifacts and culture, a spirited sailor, and a gourmet chef, Dr. Feegel was best known by many as a loyal confidante, and the source of an objective, considered medical-legal opinion that was as deeply trusted as it was accessible. He is survived by his five loving children, John Jr., Mark R., Tom K., Cathy Feegel Erhardt and Annie Feegel Jamison; nine grandchildren whom he adored, Maddie Feegel, Jack Feegel, T.J. Feegel, Ian Feegel, Haley Feegel, Charlie Caruso, Eva Erhardt, Elizabeth Erhardt and Thompson Luke Feegel; and many loyal friends and extended family. Funeral Mass will be celebrated 2 p.m. Monday, September 22, 2003 at Christ The King Catholic Church, Tampa. The family will receive friends Sunday afternoon from 2 til 4 p.m. at the Stowers Brandon Chapel. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Tampa. Stowers Funeral Home, Brandon Chapel, 401 W. Brandon Blvd. (Hwy. 60), Brandon, Florida 33511-5001. 813-689-1211.