ELWOOD, Ind. -- Autopsy test results show that an 8-year-old boy who authorities initially thought died in a house fire was dead before it began, the Madison County prosecutor said.

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Prosecutor: Ruling On Fire To Be Reconsidered

Authorities in Madison County now are uncertain what caused the death of Mark Adrian Norris II (pictured, right). And the cause of the fire at his home -- which authorities at first said was accidental -- will be closely examined, Prosecutor Rodney Cummings said.

The boy, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair, was pronounced dead Jan. 21 at the scene of the fire at his home in the town about 45 miles northeast of Indianapolis. His mother, Jennifer Norris, and his 1-year-old sister and 5-year-old brother escaped uninjured.

"The information that we have right now (is) that the child did not die as a result of injuries sustained in the fire," Cummings said Wednesday.

The Elwood Fire Department and the state fire marshal's office last week said the cause of the fire was accidental. Elwood police had attributed the cause to an electric fan.

But Steve Buck, an investigator for the Anderson Fire Department who is reviewing the blaze, said he was waiting for tests on electrical cords, and would make a determination later.

One of the boy's grandmothers, Terrie Chitwood, said her family was getting the feeling that authorities were suspicious of her daughter Jennifer Norris.

"All I know is my daughter is going through pure hell right now," Chitwood said. "She just buried her son last week, and now all of the sudden she's getting fingers pointed at her.

"She would do nothing to hurt that (child)."