Two Contractors Charged with Manslaughter in Carbon Monoxide Death of Evergreen State College Student

Two men have been charged with second-degree manslaughter following the death of Jonathan Rodriguez, a 21-year-old student at The Evergreen State College.

Rodriguez died from carbon monoxide poisoning on Dec. 11, caused by a poorly installed tankless water heater in his on-campus apartment, according to court records.

Frank McCutcheon, 53, and Brett McCutcheon, 32, who were employed by Olympia Sheet Metal, are accused of causing Rodriguez's death by incorrectly installing the water heater at his on-campus apartment a week earlier. Investigators found that the unit lacked proper ventilation, causing dangerous levels of carbon monoxide to build up.

"That deficient installation caused the death of Jonathan Rodriguez by introducing into the residence levels of carbon monoxide over 20 times the acceptable limit," Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Andrew Filak wrote in a probate cause statement.

Two other students in the building, as well as a responding Evergreen police officer, were also treated for carbon monoxide poisoning at the time.

A March report by Washington State Patrol identified further issues that contributed to Rodriguez's death. The report noted that the carbon monoxide detectors, which activated on Dec. 11, were incorrectly treated as faulty rather than a serious warning, and were silenced by Evergreen staff. Additionally, the report highlighted a lack of training and understanding among Evergreen employees and residence maintenance personnel regarding the functions of the fire alarm and carbon monoxide systems.

"This was a tragic yet avoidable situation," Chief John R. Batiste said in a statement at the time. "The State Fire Marshal's office is a part of the Washington State Patrol and on behalf of State Fire Marshal Chad Cross, we urge everyone to make sure they have properly working smoke/fire and CO alarms in their homes and businesses and understand their operations and maintenance. When you hear the alarm, get out. Treat each event with the urgency it deserves. Lives depend on it."

In a statement following the State Patrol's report, school officials called Rodriguez's death a "devastating loss" and promised to improve training protocols.

"[The Washington State Patrol's] investigation found that lack of training and insufficient protocols for responding to carbon monoxide alarms contributed to this tragic accident. As a result, we are taking numerous steps to ensure our students' safety - including improving training on incident detection and updating alarm response protocols," the college said.

The McCutcheons were charged with second-degree manslaughter on July 11. Frank McCutcheon appeared in court on Aug 6., where he pleaded not guilty. Brett McCutcheon's arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 3.