An architect who designed and oversaw the construction of a home in the Hollywood Hills that caught fire and caused the death of a firefighter in 2011 has pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter.

The defendant, German national Gerhard Albert Becker, 49, was sentenced to one year in county jail and three years probation after he reached a plea agreement with prosecutors and the court. Becker will be deported after he completes his incarceration, Deputy District Attorney Sean Carney said.

The fire at a home in 1500 block of Viewsite Drive, located in the hills above West Hollywood, occurred on Feb. 6, 2011. Firefighter Glenn Allen, a 36-year veteran of the Los Angeles Fire Department, died from injuries he suffered when a ceiling collapsed while firefighters were attempting to extinguish the blaze.

Becker built and owned the home where the fire occurred, and had reportedly installed multiple fireplaces indoors that were specifically meant only for outdoor use. Investigators determined that flames from one of the fireplaces started the fire, which spread into the walls and attic.

Carney said Becker willfully ignored building codes or misled building inspectors. However, Judge Robert Perry accepted Becker’s plea agreement, and indicated that building inspectors should have discovered that the outdoor fireplaces were installed indoors before signing off on the residence’s occupancy permit. A building and safety investigator signed the occupancy permit three months prior to the fire occurring. According to media reports, Becker may have moved the fireplaces outdoors for the inspection, and later moved them back in.

During the trial, Perry listened to testimony from the firefighter’s widow, Melanie Allen, who said the family was “ripped to pieces” by the tragedy. It was unclear whether any civil lawsuit would be filed against Becker, or the city’s Building and Safety Department, as a result of Allen’s death.