PORTLAND, Maine – A Maine man is about to stand before a judge in a trial that could result in the first time in the state's history that a landlord is convicted for manslaughter in a tenant death stemming from negligent building operation.
Gregory Nisbet was indicted for manslaughter in a November 2014 fire that killed six people in Portland. His trial gets underway on Monday in the city.
The case is expected to address whether the home was being used as a legal duplex or an illegal rooming house. Nisbet has contended that it was the former.
The house has been razed since the fire, which occurred following a Halloween party.
Manslaughter is punishable by up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine in Maine.
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