Criminal Charges Filed in L.A. City L.O.D.D.

It has been almost a year since Los Angeles City Firefighter Glen Allen was killed while battling a structure fire in the community of Hollywood Hills. Allen was killed when a portion of the mansion collapsed on him during the fire. Other department members used power tools to remove him from the debris and then transported him to the hospital.

Prosecutors announced today that Gerhard Becker, 48, the architect and primary contractor of the home was arrested late last week and is charged with involuntary manslaughter in Allen's death. Five other firefighters were injured while fighting the blaze.

The fire was determined to be caused by an 18 ft. long fire-pit type appliance that had been built inside the mansion, despite Gerhard being warned against it, according the an L.A. Times blog.  The fire caused a residential fire sprinkler pipe to fail, causing the ceiling to become filled with water and then fail.

Gerhard faces four years in prison if convicted.

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This was rumored in the works almost a year ago, Bernhard was arrested as he returned to the country on Saturday. I have to wonder, was the announcement of the prosecution delayed until Bernhard returned and could be arrested, or did Bernhard return to face the charges?

It really doesn't make any difference, it sounds like the code violations were negligent enough to warrant prosecution. I have been waiting for this for a while.

Thanks for reading,
Schmoe.