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Parkersburg dismissed as defendant in lawsuits over fatal 2023 fire

By Evan Bevins 7 min read

PARKERSBURG - The City of Parkersburg has been dismissed from two lawsuits stemming from a fatal fire at a downtown building that had been the subject of litigation over efforts to inspect the property prior to the 2023 blaze.

The cases are proceeding against organizations and one individual who own or owned 814-816 Market St., with a hearing on motions to consolidate the cases, dismiss another defendant and compel evidence set for Monday before Wood County Circuit Court Judge Jason Wharton.

Both lawsuits were filed Dec. 5, 2025, two years to the day after a fire claimed the life of 27-year-old Ashley Michele Kimble of Parkersburg. One is a wrongful death suit filed by Kimble's mother, Pamela, on behalf of her daughter's estate, citing the impact of her loss on her son, parents and siblings. The other is a property damage claim by the apartment's resident, Heather Koffel.

Kimble was declared dead at the scene after her body was found in the third floor apartment where the fire started, according to the West Virginia State Fire Marshal's Office. Investigators ruled the cause of the fire undetermined, but likely accidental.

The initial named defendants in the lawsuits were the city of Parkersburg, Ari Gold, Emanuel's LLC and Greenmont Capital Associates LLC.

Both suits alleged the owners of the building and the City of Parkersburg "negligently and/or wantonly failed to inspect the premises in a reasonable and timely manner to insure that the premises were safe for habitation" and the owners failed "to provide and equip the apartment properly with smoke detectors and smoke alarms which would warn the occupants of a fire and/or smoke."

Gold and the city moved for their dismissal from the case. Emanuel's and Greenmont denied the allegations.

Previous litigation

The building had been the subject of litigation between Parkersburg and the property's owners, Emanuel’s LLC and Greenmont Capital Associates, over the city's attempts to inspect the building.

The city filed suit in March 2021 after three inspections of 814-816 Market St. from the previous fall had reportedly been denied by Ari Gold, listed in court documents as Emanuel's CEO. He was out of town when multiple city officials arrived to search the premises in February 2021, with officials saying they believed construction was being done in the building without a permit. The chief code official indicated they would return for a search on March 1, but Gold's attorney said he did not consent to the search, according to previous reports.

Two days after the city filed its complaint in Wood County Circuit Court, Gold sued the city, Mayor Tom Joyce and several city officials in federal court, alleging his constitutional rights were violated by the city's attempted warrantless search.

Although the city itself was dismissed from the case in 2022, a jury found in Gold's favor and awarded him $29,600 in compensatory damages and a combined $95,000 in punitive damages.

In the local case, Wood County Circuit Court Judge Robert Waters denied the city's request for an injunction allowing them to inspect the building. The city obtained an administrative warrant, but Gold's attorney challenged its validity.

The circuit court case remained open at the time of the fire, with the city still seeking the ability to conduct a fire code inspection and the defendants proposing that it be performed by a private company.

Fire Chief Jason Matthews confirmed the space occupied by a tatto shop on the first floor of 814 Market St. was inspected when they moved back in after the fire, but that is the only portion. Joyce said this week the full building has never been inspected "even though the city made reasonable efforts."

Motions to dismiss

In the City of Parkerburg's motion to dismiss, attorney Benjamin T. Hughes argued the city is immune under West Virginia's Tort Claims and Insurance Reform Act, which limits the liability of political subdivisions and conveys immunity to employees when acting within the scope of their jobs.

"Plaintiff has sued the correct defendants here, other than the city of Parkersburg," the motion to dismiss said.

On June 23, attorney Bill Merriman, representing Kimble's estate, filed paperwork dismissing the city as a defendant. Merriman did the same as Koffel's attorney in her case on July 9.

Merriman did not return a call seeking comment by deadline Friday.

"Permits and inspections are important to ensure safe and appropriate work is being done by properly credentialed persons and contractors," Joyce said this week.

"The owner has consistently failed to allow any inspections by any qualified party or person," he said. "The recent dismissal of the city from the action filed on behalf of the victim I believe to be appropriate given the fact that our efforts to ensure a safe and suitable building were denied by the owner and the court before the tragic and fatal fire on Dec. 5, 2023."

Colton Parsons, Gold's attorney, declined to respond to Joyce's statement, saying he does not comment on pending litigation.

In Gold's motions to dismiss, Parsons argues neither complaint made specific allegations against Gold other than him being part of Emanuel’s LLC and emphasizing West Virginia case law that "presumes ... that corporations are separate from their shareholders." It also says Gold was never properly served with the lawsuit.

In June, Parsons filed a motion seeking dismissal because the plaintiffs had not responded to the original motion within 21 days. A response filed by Merriman after that says the original complaint is sufficient and asks the court to deny the motion to dismiss, which has yet to be ruled upon.

Counterclaim

Emanuel's, also represented by Parsons, responded to both suits by denying allegations it failed to provide and equip the apartment with smoke detectors and smoke alarms and failed to adequately inspect for defects in electrical wiring. Both responses suggest other parties, including Koffel and Ashley Kimble, could have contributed to the circumstances that led to the fire.

"This defendant maintains the property was maintained in a safe condition and that it took measures to protect its tenants and the public," Emanuel’s response to Kimble's suit says.

The company filed a counterclaim against Koffel, saying she breached her lease by "permitting unauthorized individuals to reside in or remain at the property without landlord consent" and engaging in or permitting smoking in the apartment, which was prohibited. It seeks damages including the cost of repair, remediation, restoration and lost rents.

In a response to the counterclaim, Merriman denied the allegations and said the counterclaim was filed after the statute of limitations had expired.

Ryan Q. Ashworth, Greenmont's attorney, said in the company's response that Greenmont "previously engaged in a joint venture involving the ownership of real estate located at 816 Market St." One of Emanuel’s responses denied Greenmont owns the property.

A message seeking clarification from Ashworth had not been returned by deadline Friday.

The Greenmont responses also deny the allegations and suggest other parties may have contributed to the situation. Greenmont's conduct, it says, was not a substantial factor.

Other motions

The cases were originally assigned to circuit Judge J.D. Beane, but he notified the parties in May that a member of his staff "previously provided legal services to defendants Ari Gold and Emanuels LLC several years ago," a relationship "entirely separate from the matters in controversy." Although the court said it did not feel its impartiality would be affected, Emanuel's requested the recusal to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.

The court agreed, and the case was transferred to Wharton in July.

Parsons also filed a motion on Emanuel's behalf seeking to consolidate the two cases, noting they both arise from the same underlying incident. Merriman opposed this on behalf of the plaintiffs, saying the causes of action are completely different.

The consolidation motion is one of three set to be considered at a 10:30 a.m. Monday hearing before Wharton. The others are Gold's motion to dismiss and Emanuel's motion to compel the state medical examiner to release Kimble's autopsy report. According to the motion, the office said it couldn't provide the report without a release from next of kin or a court order confirming no criminal matter is pending.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.

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