Two women in Newry Township died of natural causes

Published 6:58 pm Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Freeborn County Sheriff Bob Kindler answers questions from the media Wednesday during a press conference about the deaths of two people in Newry Township. A preliminary autopsy report later indicated both deaths were medical in nature. --Sarah Stultz/Albert Lea Tribune

Investigators say the two deaths at the same house Tuesday were merely a coincidence.

The two women who were found dead by authorities at a home in Newry Township appeared to have died from separate medical complications, according to preliminary autopsy results released late Wednesday afternoon.

A Freeborn County sheriff’s deputy waits Wednesday in a patrol car outside the house at 88793 320th St. in rural Blooming Prairie. -- Tim Engstrom/Albert Lea Tribune

A Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office news release states Arlene Evon Jolson, 76, and her daughter, Kristi Renae Jolson, 50, were the women found at the house, 88793 320th St., in rural Blooming Prairie. The address is on Freeborn County Road 35.

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Preliminary autopsy results indicate Arlene Jolson died on the first floor of the residence due to complications of a heart-related condition.

Kristi Jolson coincidentally died within the same time period of a brain aneurism, according to the results. Her body was found in an upstairs bedroom.

The preliminary report did not include an approximate time of death, and toxicology reports were not yet available.

The report eliminated carbon monoxide as a cause of death.

The preliminary results bring closure to what Freeborn County Sheriff Bob Kindler earlier in the day called an “unusual” case.

When authorities found the women’s bodies Tuesday morning, there were no obvious signs as to the cause or manner of death. There were no signs of foul play or trauma to the women.

Sheriff’s Office deputies had been called to the house after one of the women had not been to work for the second day in a row. She was last seen at work on Friday.

A family member who lived next door to the house — literally across the driveway — helped authorities get into the house.

Kindler said with the determination of the cause of death, no further investigation is warranted. The house has been released back to the family.