Rental Owners In Fatal Fire Charged With Manslaughter

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The owners of an allegedly unpermitted vacation rental in Clinton, N.Y. where Chatham Elementary School teacher Shannon Hubbard and infant daughter perished in a fire on Oct. 13, were indicted on manslaughter charges Wednesday.

 A Dutchess, N.Y., County grand jury handed up indictments against 57-year-old Dennis Darcy and his wife, 55-year-old Meredith Darcy, who each face charges of second degree manslaughter. They were arrested Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to the charges at their arraignment Wednesday afternoon. Bail was set at $50,000 cash, $100,000 secured bond or $200,000 partially secured bond for each defendant. Their attorney could not be immediately reached for comment.

 The two are accused of renting the property on Airbnb in a listing that indicated that the house was equipped with smoke detectors. Mrs. Hubbard, husband John and their two children were vacationing there when a fire broke out on the evening of Oct. 13. Mr. Hubbard and their son escaped the flames, but Mrs. Hubbard and one-year-old Maggie June perished in the blaze. Investigators found that the house had no smoke detectors or alarms.

 “This devastating tragedy could have been prevented,” Dutchess County District Attorney Anthony Parisi wrote in a news release. “The deaths of Shannon Hubbard and her young daughter in this senseless fire serve as a tragic reminder of the critical role smoke detectors play in safeguarding lives. Their absence was not only a failure of the necessary safety measures; the grand jury concluded, the defendants were aware of and deliberately ignored the significant and unjustifiable risk of death that this absence created. As we mourn their loss, we must commit to ensuring that no other family faces this same devastating fate.”

 Prosecutors say the vacation rental property owned by Mr. and Mrs. Darcy was not in compliance with state fire, building and residential codes which require the installation of smoke detectors. The two also allegedly did not possess a short-term special use permit as required by local zoning.

 The defendants are due back in court on April 7.

 Tim Waldron, Mrs. Hubbard’s father, said the family would not have any immediate comment on the indictment.

 In addition to creating a scholarship fund in Shannon and Maggie June’s names to support early childhood education, the family has been vocally supporting efforts to create legislation in Massachusetts to require safety standards for vacation rentals. Co-sponsored by State Rep. Hadley Luddy, D–Orleans, and State Sen. Julian Cyr, D–Cape and Islands, the bill has been tentatively named the Maggie Hubbard Rental Safety Act, and is currently being drafted.