VENTURA : Tests Confirm Man’s Drowning Accidental

Toxicology tests completed this week have confirmed that a Ventura man whose body washed ashore March 18 died in an accidental drowning, a deputy coroner said Friday.

Richard Adams, a 23-year-old parking lot attendant, left his Pierpont area apartment March 4 to walk his dog and was last seen alive on the nearby beach.

Two weeks later, his body washed ashore less than two miles away at Ventura Harbor.

While an autopsy showed no evidence of foul play, the coroner’s office waited until toxicology tests were completed before confirming the cause of death, Deputy Coroner Craig Stevens said.

“The toxicology tests showed nothing, and we have no evidence of any intention” by Adams to commit suicide, Stevens said.

While investigators had previously said Adams may have fallen from a jetty while walking his dog, Stevens said Friday that any such explanation would be speculation.