"There was no pulse. He was lifeless," Howard said.
The coroner completed his paperwork, placed Williams in a body bag and transported him to the funeral home, he said. There, something strange happened: The body bag moved.
"We got him into the embalming room and we noticed his legs beginning to move, like kicking," Howard said. "He also began to do a little breathing."
They immediately called an ambulance. Paramedics arrived and hooked Williams up to monitors. Sure enough, he had a heartbeat, so they transported him to the Holmes County Hospital and Clinics.
"They were in shock. I was in shock. I think everybody at the hospital was in shock," Howard said.
Howard is an elected official and not a doctor. More than 1,500 counties in the United States elect coroners and most don't require medical degrees.
