Champaign, IL- WQAD News -A member of the Champaign City Council who managed a home where a man died of carbon monoxide poisoning has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
A Champaign County grand jury indicted the 71-year-old J-W Pirtle yesterday.
He was also indicted on misdemeanor counts of criminal housing management for allegedly allowing the condition of the home to endanger the lives of its occupants.
Fourty-one-year-old Otha Harmon was found dead on January 29th and an autopsy later showed he died of carbon monoxide poisoning. The house’s other occupants became sick but survived.
Neither Pirtle nor his attorney were immediately available for comment today.
If convicted of involuntary manslaughter, Pirtle could face up to five years in prison