Richard H. Nettleton, 65, was killed at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center on the afternoon of May 31, 2019, when a coworker opened fire inside Building 2. Nettleton, a longtime municipal engineer from nearby Norfolk who spent decades on water and sewer systems and mentored younger engineers, was working in the building when the suspect moved through multiple floors; the police report places Nettleton’s death in the later part of the suspect’s path through the second floor. Colleagues remembered him as steady, service-minded, devoted to his wife Sarah, and still planning to teach after retirement.

The gunman, a City of Virginia Beach engineer who had emailed a resignation that morning, carried multiple firearms and shot victims in parking areas, stairwells, hallways, and offices before officers entered and exchanged fire. The suspect died later that day; investigators reconstructed the attack over an about 20-month inquiry that found no suicide note and described the motive as unknown, though later reviews pointed to perceived workplace grievances. Nettleton’s name was read among the twelve killed.

If anyone knew Richard H. Nettleton or has information about his time at the municipal center, please share what might help remember him or explain that day.