After pleading guilty to second-degree manslaughter and reckless endangerment in a fatal fire at a Spring Valley assisted living home, father and son Rabbi Nathaniel, 72, and Aaron Sommer, 29, have avoided jail time and will instead receive probation. The deal with prosecutors, announced on Tuesday at Rockland County Court, angered those close to the two victims who felt that justice had not been served.

According to prosecutors, the men were attempting to make the kitchen of the facility kosher for Passover through the application of fire, and failed to prevent the blaze. The resulting March 2021 conflagration killed firefighter Lieutenant Jared Lloyd and resident Oliver Hueston, and displaced more than 100 residents. 

Koshering for Passover is an annual process in many kosher facilities and homes that often involves the application of heat – whether from boiling water or fire – in order to remove any contamination by non-kosher-for-Passover foods.

In a report released in January, the New York State Department of Public Service called the Sommers’ actions in the kitchen “reckless and unpermitted.” The report traces the “raging inferno” to their “use of a blow torch with a 20-pound propane tank” and the “conveyance of multiple large shovelfuls of hot burning coals into the facility during a ritual cleansing.” These started the fire. According to the report, though, the elder Sommer had kashered the facility’s kitchen “about fifteen times since approximately 2006,” apparently without incident.

In a June 2021 press conference, Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Walsh announced the Sommers’ arrests. He also detailed the indictment: for both men, charges of second-degree manslaughter, second- and third-degree assault, fourth-degree arson, and second-degree reckless endangerment. 

In New York, the maximum penalty for one count of second-degree manslaughter – in this case, the indictment with the highest penalty – is 15 years in prison. Nathaniel was indicted on two counts, one for each victim, and pleaded guilty to both. Aaron, indicted with the same original charges, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor of second-degree reckless endangerment and will face a sentence of three years’ probation. Rockland County Judge Kevin Russo indicated he would accept the agreement reached by the prosecution and defense.

Politicians and firefighters, as well as family and colleagues of Lloyd, criticized the judge for choosing probation and accused Walsh of failing to serve the justice he said he “owed” victims when he announced the indictments in 2021. 

A group called “First Responders for Justice” has started a change.org petition calling for Walsh’s resignation following what they perceive as his failure to deliver justice. They are joined in that request by groups such as Rockland County’s Sloatsburg Fire Department, who on Tuesday posted an open letter to Walsh to their Facebook page.

Lloyd’s mother, Sabrail Davenport, characterized her reaction to Tuesday’s news as, “disappointment, disgusted, heartbroken, betrayed.” She and her family have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Spring Valley and various Evergreen affiliates. Hueston’s children have also sued Evergreen.

Rockland County Executive Ed Day, a former NYPD commander, also criticized the deal.

"I am appalled at the fact that the Lloyd and Hueston families will not get the justice they deserve," Day said in a statement. "As it stands now, the plea agreement in this matter is unacceptable to the families of those involved, unacceptable to our volunteer firefighters.”

Rockland Director of Fire and Emergency Services Chris Kear told “The Morning Show” at WRCR on Wednesday June 21 that firefighters will continue to do their jobs but that “recruitment and retention might take a hit” given Walsh’s perceived failure to give the servicemen “backing.”

Formal sentencing has been scheduled for September 20.