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No criminal charges in Tai Ho fire

Suffolk County DA Dan Conley announced today he's done with his investigation into the fatal fire that killed Boston firefighters Warren Payne and Paul Cahill and that he found nothing criminal.

In addition, I have authorized the release of the contents of our entire investigative file, including autopsy and toxicology results, to Boston Fire Commissioner Roderick J. Fraser, Jr. and the Boston Fire Department's Board of Inquiry should they wish to review it in the course of their own investigation.

A Boston Fire Department board of inquiry earlier ruled the two would have died anyway because of the nature of the fireball that erupted, but that it didn't have enough evidence to determine if the two were under the influence of either drugs or alcohol. Fire Commissioner Rod Fraser has ordered a new report.

Conley did not state what those autopsy and toxicology results showed:

The question of the presence of alcohol and/or other intoxicating substances was considered along with all other evidence and in no way changes our determination that there are no criminal charges to attach to the deaths of these firefighters.

Conley's complete statement:

DA'S PROBE INTO FATAL FIRE COMPLETE; NO CHARGES TO ISSUE

BOSTON, March 25, 2008-Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley today released the following statement upon the completion of the investigation into the Aug. 29, 2007, deaths of Firefighter Paul J. Cahill and Firefighter Warren J. Payne in West Roxbury:

"On Aug. 29, 2007, Boston Firefighters Warren J. Payne and Paul J. Cahill were killed while fighting a fire at the Tai Ho Mandarin and Cantonese Restaurant in West Roxbury. As with all unnatural or unattended deaths within the City of Boston, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office, in conjunction with homicide detectives from the Boston Police Department, began an investigation into these deaths to determine whether any crime was committed. After a complete and thorough review of all of the evidence, I have determined that there is no basis for criminal charges to issue.

"In addition, I have authorized the release of the contents of our entire investigative file, including autopsy and toxicology results, to Boston Fire Commissioner Roderick J. Fraser, Jr. and the Boston Fire Department's Board of Inquiry should they wish to review it in the course of their own investigation.

"As in every death investigation, our legal obligation in this case was specifically to determine whether any crime was committed: that is, whether any action by any individual or individuals rose to the level of wanton and reckless conduct, causing the deaths of these two firefighters. The question of the presence of alcohol and/or other intoxicating substances was considered along with all other evidence and in no way changes our determination that there are no criminal charges to attach to the deaths of these firefighters.

"Firefighters Warren Payne and Paul Cahill went into a dangerous fire - an inherently deadly environment - fully aware of the risks. They gave their lives in the line of duty to protect the lives and property of strangers. Nothing in our investigation has produced any evidence that diminishes the magnitude of their sacrifice or the heroism of their actions."

Conley notified Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Boston Fire Commissioner Roderick J. Fraser, Jr., of the investigation's findings via telephone this afternoon.

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Comments

Swept under the rug.

I don't care if the Firefighters were under the influence or not. This fire should have been prevented and these heroes could still be home with loved ones.

Someone should be charged and it starts with the AHJ's doing the Inspecting (Health Department) who should be inspecting the exhaust system (Pull the Filters and don't be afraid to get some grease on yourselfs).
Then the restaurant owner who knew his exhaust system wasn't being cleaned properly. He seen the receipt and what was cleaned and what wasn't all this time, for it to leak into the ceiling.
Then bring the so called hood/fan polishing company who should have not been in there to begin with. A professional company would have noticed the problems and it wouldn't have mattered if they were certified or not. Professionals clean the complete exhaust system.

Charges filed against:
Health Department or other AHJ: They didn't come out to inspect even though they have had problems with this restaurant before
The owner of restaurant: Knows what kind of oil/heat is used to cook the food, and how hard it is to remove. Had seen the receipt sometime when paying to notice just the hood and fan were cleaned.
The cleaners: Knew they weren't cleaning the system properly, didn't care to clean properly, or should have just stuck to the janitorial side.

Leave the firefighters out of this and stick with the cause that could have been avoided in the beginning.

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Leave the firefighters out of this and stick with the cause that could have been avoided in the beginning.

Do you also mean, leave the drunk firefighter out of it? Showing up to work sober is a minimum expectation. Until the BFD/union acknowledges that there was another problem at TAI HO that needs to be addressed systemically, the issue will remain an issue.

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