D.A. to file charges in deadly Washington Township fire case
Fayette County District Attorney Nancy D. Vernon said Saturday she will file involuntary manslaughter charges against the mothers of three children who perished in a 2001 fire in Washington Township. Billie Ohler, the mother of 8-month-old Rebecca Ohler and 2-year-old Gerald Younkin, and Margie Povlik, the mother of 3-year-old Tomas Long, each will be charged with three counts of involuntary manslaughter, said Vernon.
The women lived together at the Marion Villa housing complex when they allegedly left the children alone to go to another apartment on Dec. 14, 2001. When they emerged, the women saw their apartment on fire.
All three children inside died a short time later. Ohler’s younger brother, 14-year-old Shane Shipley, was upstairs sleeping when the fire broke out but escaped out a window.
Vernon said she opted to charge both mothers for the deaths of all three children rather than just their own because the women were jointly responsible for the children.
At this point, Vernon said, special child abuse prosecutor Jack R. Heneks Jr. is preparing the paperwork on the charges, and she expects it will be filed early this week.
At an inquest last year, police were still unable to pinpoint how the fire started, but they believe it started in the living room in the corner of a sectional sofa. Officials found Rebecca Ohler and Long in the kitchen of the home and believe Long may have been trying to carry the baby to safety.
Younkin’s body was found in a downstairs bedroom, between a wall and a bed.
Officials believe he may have been trying to hide from the fire.
The decision to file charges came about a week after Mary Younkin, the grandmother of Gerald Younkin, expressed her displeasure at the length of time it’s taken to resolve the case.
Younkin spoke with Vernon after she made a decision in an unrelated case with relative speed and asked to have the investigation stepped up.
Vernon agreed and promised a resolution in two weeks.
Younkin could not be reached for comment.
The charges will be filed before District Justice Jesse Cramer in Fayette City, Vernon said.