Portland Landlord Receives 90-Day Jail Sentence For Fire That Left 6 Dead

A Portland landlord was sentenced Thursday to 90 days in jail in connection with an apartment fire on Noyes Street that took the lives of 6 people.

Gregory Nisbet, who was acquitted of manslaughter charges but found guilty of a code violation, received a 90-day jail sentence and a $1,000 fine, the Portland Press Herald reports.

It is believed to be the first jail sentence handed down to a Maine landlord for a safety code violation.

Superior Court Justice Thomas Warren said the three tenants who were killed in the Nov. 2014 fire, David Bragdon Jr., 27, Nicole “Nikki” Finlay, 26, and Ashley Thomas, 29, were deprived of an emergency exit and a chance to escape the fire.

Investigators said the staircase was on fire, and the only window was too small to climb through.

“This was a knowing violation of the code and it had serious consequences,” Warren said.

Steven Summers, 29, of Rockland, Maelisha Jackson, 23, of Topsham and Christopher “Miles” Conlee, 25, of Portland, who were visiting the house for a Halloween party, were also killed in the blaze.

The blaze was the state's deadliest fire in nearly four decades.

Nisbet’s sentence was stayed for 21 days, so he can decide whether to appeal.