Plumber averts conviction for code violations

Plumber Harry Sullard -- whose company created a serious fire hazard at the upscale Meridian condo community near the Strip -- walked away from court Friday innocent of multiple misdemeanor charges of violating safety codes that ensure a water supply to fight fire inside a multistory building.

Judge Tony Abbatangelo ruled that because Sullard had paid $40,000 out of pocket to bring his crew's sub-standard repair of a vital water line into compliance with code, he should not be penalized with a criminal conviction.

"I'm not thrilled with the way this came down," the judge told both sides Friday. "Yeah, there were some technical violations ... but ultimately the work was done correctly."

Abbatangelo rejected the prosecutor's argument that regardless of whether Sullard was present when his workers did the bad repair, he is still responsible. Prosecutor Peter Thunell also argued to convict Sullard -- who has been a plumber in Las Vegas for about 30 years -- for failing to arrange mandatory inspections of the work by the Clark County Fire Department.

Sullard's bench trial in Las Vegas Justice Court relates to a job that his business, H K Plumbing, did in autumn 2007 at the Meridian, 250 E. Flamingo Road, after a sudden leak swamped the lawn near one of its mid-rise buildings. The leak came from a vital buried line that feeds water to indoor ceiling sprinklers and fire-hose hookups.

H K Plumbing worked outside the scope of Sullard's license to fix the fire line, which takes a specialized credential issued by the state.

Further, H K's repair was shoddy, according to inspectors who eventually checked the line after two of Sullard's ex-employees notified the county fire department about the danger. If firefighters had used the line after its first repair, it could have failed from the high water pressure.

Sullard hired a properly licensed plumber to fix the compromised line. It performed well when, soon after, the building happened to suffer a fire in one unit.

The Meridian homeowners association has sued Sullard, and Sullard has sued his two ex-employees, Eric Edwards and Mario Salinas for the bad work.

He also testified that he didn't know his crew had worked on a fire line. But H K charged more than $39,000 for the substandard work, according to Sally FitzHenry of the Meridian homeowners association. One of Sullard's bills describes work done "10 feet below grade," which is the typical depth only for fire lines. But no bills were used as evidence in the trial.

Contact reporter Joan Whitely at jwhitely@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0268.