A landlord who was being accused of playing a role in the death of four tenet in 2010 has been slapped with probation rather than jail sentence, reported the Record, a Woodland Park based newspaper.

Florence Brown, 63-years-old, of Clifton, who owned a multi-family home in Paterson which caught on fire, leaving four people dead, was cited for numerous electrical violation.

Six month before the fire engulfed the home, inspectors found exposed wiring in the basement and other code violations, which were never corrected by Ms Brown.

As a result of poor building maintenance four individuals died in the fire.

Ms Brown faced man slaughter charges which would have given her 40 years in jail, but after investigation the Passaic County Prosecutor’s office concluded she likely did not know the magnitude of the violations and scaled back its case against the landlord. As a result Ms Brown, Monday in court, was slapped with nothing more than probation.