Everett State Rep. Steven Smith will head to Chelsea District Court for a scheduled criminal hearing on July 26 at 10 AM over his failure to comply in a timely manner with the serious fire code violations at two apartment buildings he owns at 26–28 and 30–32 Yeamans Street in Revere.

Smith was found to have 24 apartments in two multi-family homes that were originally only approved for 12 apartments, all discovered during a call to the dwellings in May.

Revere Fire Chief Gene Doherty said that he met with Smith and his lawyer—Attorney Robert Jordan, a former city solicitor in Everett—last month, at which time the preponderance of evidence concerning the violations prompted Jordan to acknowledge Smith’s responsibility to correct the situation and agree to install a new fire alarm system and address a host of other safety violations.

As a result of the meeting, Smith was reportedly ordered to bring in an updated plan to bring the system up to code. But neither Smith nor his attorney failed to show up, prompting Chief Doherty to file the request for a hearing.

Architectural drawings used to bring the buildings up to code have been approved, but plans to remove the illegal apartments and wall partitions have been delayed due to Smith’s contractor failing to submit a complete application, stated Revere Building Inspector Benjamin DeChristoforo.

Since the violations became public knowledge, Smith has stated in several news outlets that he always had good intentions regarding the apartment situation, even saying at one point that he didn’t believe they were actually illegal.

Only time will tell.