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The Chicago Tribune recently published a report detailing the sentencing of a building owner for a short prison term following the collapse of a structure on December 22, 2010. The incident led to the tragic deaths of two Chicago firefighters, FF Edward J. Stringer and FF/EMT Corey D. Ankum.
In a recent court hearing, the owner of the abandoned building, Chuck Dai, pleaded guilty to contempt of court and was sentenced to six months in Cook County Jail. The sentence came after he failed to complete required repairs on the deteriorating property, which ultimately collapsed during a fire. The tragedy claimed the lives of two firefighters and injured 19 others.
Dai’s attorney, Gene Murphy, had previously criticized the criminal charges against his client, but on the day of the sentencing, he stated that the plea was made to spare the families of the victims from enduring a lengthy trial. Judge James Obbish also ordered Dai to pay $5,229 in fines.
Edward Stringer, 47, and Corey Ankum, 34, were among those who lost their lives when the weakened truss roof of the old South Side laundry building gave way just days before Christmas. Their deaths sparked widespread outrage and calls for accountability.
Several civil lawsuits are still ongoing in Cook County Circuit Court, brought by the families of the deceased firefighters. In a statement, State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez emphasized that while administrative actions are typically taken for code violations, the loss of life warranted criminal consequences.
In 2007, city inspectors had issued 14 citations for the vacant building at 1738-1744 E. 75th St., citing issues with the leaking roof and damaged trusses. Despite this, Dai repeatedly failed to appear in court, accumulating $14,000 in fines. In 2009, he agreed to make repairs by November 2010, but prosecutors claimed he never followed through. City inspectors had not verified the work before the fatal fire occurred.
Following the incident, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) found that poor communication within the fire department—specifically, some firefighters lacking radios—contributed to the fatalities. Additionally, the city's Building Department was criticized for not identifying the building as hazardous.
In response to the tragedy, the city implemented new safety measures, including marking dangerous abandoned buildings with red “X†symbols and limiting firefighter entry into such structures unless there is evidence of occupancy. The fire was later determined to have started from a trash fire, and firefighters had entered the building searching for homeless individuals.