A luxury Hamptons home owner whose shoddy electrical work led to the deaths of two Maryland sisters in a house fire on Long Island, New York, will avoid prison time in a plea deal with prosecutors.
Jillian Weiner, 21, and her sister, Lindsay, 19, were vacationing with their terminally ill father at Peter Miller's $1.8 million Sag Harbor home in August 2022 when the deadly fire broke out, Suffolk County prosecutors said in documents. press release.
Miller, 56, admitted to overloading the home's electrical system by installing an illegal outdoor kitchen and failing to install smoke detectors with working backup batteries.
Prosecutors said a kitchen vent blocked by a wooden frame posed a fire hazard, leaving two women trapped in an upstairs bedroom.
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Jillian Weiner, 21, was a senior at the University of Michigan, and Lindsay, 19, was about to enter her sophomore year at Tulane University. (Jillie Weiner/VCSO)
Jillian and Lindsay's father, Louis, a 59-year-old federal prosecutor who was dying of pancreatic cancer, survived the house fire along with their mother, Alisa, 56, and their 23-year-old brother, Zachary. The New York Post reported.
Miller pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Monday and will be sentenced to three years probation and 200 hours of community service, his lawyer, Edward Burke, told The Washington Post. Miller's wife, Pamela, 55, who managed the property, which he rented out for $8,000 a week during the summer, was sentenced to 100 hours of community service for a misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment.
A spokesman for the District Attorney's Office said: Greater Long Island As part of the plea agreement, the couple will not face any prison time.
In court Monday, a tearful Miller admitted that he installed the illegal wiring on the property himself and said it was never inspected for safety. Daily Mail Reported.
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Peter Miller, 56, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and Pamela Miller, 55, pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter. (Suffolk County District Attorney)
According to prosecutors, the family tried to use the outdoor charcoal grill at their rental property on the evening of Aug. 1. When the food wasn't cooking properly, they moved into the kitchen and went to bed after dinner around 11:30 p.m.
At about 3:30 a.m., the woman's parents were awakened by the sound of breaking glass, saw the fire raging and yelled for their children to leave the house. They were able to escape to the first floor, but Zachary, who had also locked himself in a room, climbed onto the roof and jumped from the second floor, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said Lewis burned the soles of his feet as he tried to reach the house to save his daughters but was unable to penetrate the thick smoke and flames. The incident was described as “devastating” and “haunting” to the surviving family.
Weiner's older sister, Jillian, was a senior at the University of Michigan, and Lindsay was a sophomore at Tulane University, according to prosecutors.
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Jillian Weiner and Lindsay Weiner were murdered on Aug. 2, 2022, at Peter Miller's Sag Harbor vacation home. (Jillie Weiner/VCSO)
According to authorities, the Millers were indicted in Southampton City Court on 29 code violations following the incident before their arrest on Aug. 22. The charges included failing to obtain a rental permit before renting, operating a temporary rental when prohibited by law, and installing electrical outlets without the proper electrical boxes.
An attorney for the Millers could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Weiner family also filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the couple, according to the Post.
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“First and foremost, my heartfelt condolences go out to the Wiener family, who lost a young woman in this tragic fire. Such a loss is unimaginable, and our community grieves with them,” Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said in a statement. “We take all housing code matters very seriously because they are vital to public safety. If you own a rental property, you have a duty to ensure its safety.”
