UPDATE: No Charges In Case Of Utility Freezing 93-Year-Old To Death

A 93-year-old Michigan man, pictured, center, died after an electricity limiter placed by the utility company on his line due to his overdue bill malfunctioned, depriving the house of enough electricity to run the furnace.

Marvin Schur owed about $1,000 on his electrical bill. The line limiter placed by Bay City Electric Light & Power blows a fuse if more than a certain amount of electricity is drawn into the house. It then requires a reset. It’s unknown whether the city worker actually talked to Schur or told him how to reset it. “This (limiter) is supposed to regulate the amount of electricity he was using, but still allow enough power to run the furnace. Obviously, it didn’t work,” said a neighbor.

In some states, it’s illegal to shut the power off in winter, a law that was probably enacted to keep billing departments from killing citizens.

Autopsy: Bay City man froze inside his home [Bay City Times] (Thanks To Miranda!) (Photo: eduardoizquierdo)

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