The August deaths of two men in an apartment building on Second Street in Williamsburg have been ruled accidental.
Maj. Greg Riley of the Williamsburg Police Department said no charges will be filed in the matter.
The men were found dead within 24 hours of each other in a building with apartments on the upper floor and businesses on the lower floor. A report from the Medical Examiner’s office in Richmond came back Dec. 20 saying the men had died from carbon monoxide poisoning and that their death was “accidental.”
The carbon monoxide poisoning is believed to have come from a generator that was used at the site. Riley referred to that generator as “the most likely source” for the carbon monoxide, though he noted it was never directly tied to the deaths. He said there is no evidence the generator was used recklessly or in a way that is inconsistent with the manufacturer’s safety recommendations.
“At the time it was located it was found inside the building, but it was disconnected and being stored,” Riley said. “We were given information that it was operated outside.”
He said police did not have a way to refute the information they received about where the generator was used.
First responders found 49-year-old John Raymond Norman and 41-year-old Adam Priseler in their apartments on the 100 block of Second Street. Norman was found first, slumped over on his right side on a couch. They found Priseler the next morning on his bathroom floor.
The report from the Medical Examiner’s office was held up by a paperwork glitch. Riley said that office did not note police needed to receive the results of the report.
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