Criminal investigation of balcony collapse that killed 6 is ongoing, prosecutor says
A criminal investigation is ongoing over a balcony collapse at a Berkeley, California, apartment building earlier this month that killed six people and injured seven others.
But Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley declined to identify the targets of the probe or the theory of the potential case, because it hasn’t yet been established that a crime occurred, reports the Associated Press.
City inspectors said the wooden supports for the balcony rotted due to exposure to moisture.
Criminal charges over such building issues are rare, and the last known prosecution, over a 1996 balcony collapse, occurred in San Francisco. The jury deadlocked on an involuntary manslaughter charge but convicted the property owner of two misdemeanors. He also paid over $13 million to settle civil litigation.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Will probe of balcony collapse that killed 6 lead to new apartment building standards?”
See also:
ABAJournal.com: “Architect gets 1 year for death of firefighter in ceiling collapse of LA home he built”
