Erie County District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz announced Wednesday that charges have been filed against an Erie woman following a house fire that claimed the lives of her three young children.
Danozjna Williams has been charged with third-degree homicide, aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and recklessly endangering another person.
On March 29, members of the City of Erie Fire Department and the City of Erie Police Department responded to a report of a structure fire at 535 ½ E. 26th St., apartment number two, upstairs.
Upon entering the second-floor apartment through the south side door, firefighters located three children, ages 5, 3 and 5 months, in the north end of the apartment. No adults were in the residence at the time.
The 5-year-old and 3-year-old were transported to UPMC Hamot and subsequently pronounced deceased. The 5-month-old was life-flighted to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh for advanced medical treatment. She later succumbed to her injuries, and was pronounced deceased on April 3, due to cardiac arrest following her inhalation injury.
Erie Police Detective James Langdon and Detective Sergeant Dave Madurai commenced an investigation, which revealed Williams left her children without supervision for an extended period to facilitate a drug transaction. The fire broke out while Williams was away from the home, and the children were trapped inside, alone.
“This is a heartbreaking, but completely preventable tragedy,” Hirz said. “The evidence shows these young children were left without supervision in a situation where they needed their mother to protect them and keep them safe. That duty was abandoned, with devastating consequences.”
Hirz also expressed gratitude to the first responders.
“We want to commend the courage and professionalism of our firefighters and law enforcement officers,” Hirz said. “They responded swiftly, battled dangerous conditions and faced the unimaginable task of recovering these young victims. We are incredibly grateful for their service to our community.”
A press release from the district attorney’s office stated the investigation is ongoing, and as with all criminal cases, charges and any discussion thereof are merely allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.