This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Tooele man died Sunday, apparently due an asthma attack brought on by a fight with his roommate over poor housekeeping.
The roommate, Monty Shane Degelbeck, 53, was charged Monday in 3rd District Court with second-degree felony manslaughter in the death of 28-year-old Christopher Warr.
A probable cause statement states that Degelbeck told Tooele police that about 9:30 p.m. Sunday, "he and the victim got into an argument over a mess made in the house" at 70 N. Broadway, in Tooele.
When the victim allegedly lunged at Degelbeck, he in turn grabbed Warr by the shirt and "held the victim on the ground" until Warr complained he could not breathe. "The suspect stated he let the victim go [and] the victim got to his feet, but continued to struggle breathing," prosecutors recounted.
Degelbeck said that Warr sat in a chair and used an inhaler, but still lost consciousness.
However, the probable cause statement goes on to say that a female witness, who also was at the home during the fight, told police that Degelbeck had "pushed the victim to the ground and held him down with one hand on [his] throat.
"The victim started turning purple and appeared as though he could not breathe," the woman told police, saying she then separated the two men and tried, to no avail, to help Warr "with his asthma treatment."
Warr died a short time later at a hospital. Degelbeck was booked into the Tooele County jail, where he remained Tuesday pending court proceedings.
Twitter: @remims