ST. MARYS — Prosecutors tell our I-Team the result of a federal workplace safety appeal will determine whether anyone faces criminal charges for a deadly building collapse.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, the collapse happened at a building along East Spring Street in St. Marys on July 31.
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On Wednesday, the I-Team got new information from local prosecutors, and on a separate case appealing the findings of a federal investigation.
We’re talking about the punishments from federal officials who look into workplace safety.
They leveled those against the building’s owner after the investigation into July’s deadly collapse.
That owner is appealing those penalties.
Auglaize County Prosecutor Ben Elder told the I-Team his office has not yet made a charging decision or presented the case to a grand jury.
He said he’s waiting to see what happens with a federal appeals process in connection with Todd Klosterman’s OSHA citations.
As News Center 7 has previously reported, in November, OSHA cited Klosterman and fined him more than $41,000 in connection with its investigation into the building collapse that killed Christopher Brown.
Klosterman owned the building, and Brown was working for him there when he died.
In December, Klosterman contested the citations before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
The I-Team checked online federal records Wednesday that show the review commission has not yet released a decision on Klosterman’s appeal.
Elder added that the timing of his office’s charging decision depends on the OSHA appeals results.
He said if the review commission decides to drop the citations, his office would not pursue criminal charges.
In that case, his office would “probably not be able to move forward.”
“Because anything we would have would be based on a violation of the OSHA regulations. If OSHA turns out not to have a violation then I don’t think we would either,” Elder said.
“There is never enough compensation to the family for losing a loved one,” Michael Wright, Lawyer for the estate of Christopher Brown, said.
The I-Team also talked to the lawyer for Brown’s estate in a civil wrongful death case.
An Auglaize County judge awarded Brown’s family approximately $700,000 of a $1 million settlement.
“But based on the circumstances and what we had to work with, the family is satisfied with this resolution,” Wright said.
I-Team lead investigator John Bedell reached out to Klosterman’s lawyer from the wrongful death case, and he’s waiting to hear back.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
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