A motivational speaker has been charged with manslaughter over the deaths of three people who fell ill during a meeting at a Arizona sweat lodge¹.

一位激励演讲者被指控过失杀人，据悉他曾在亚利桑那州某蒸汗屋举办集会，导致三人患病猝死。

James Ray (right) was charged on Wednesday

James Ray surrendered to自首，投降 police at his lawyer's office and was taken to jail.

The deaths occurred at a retreat休息寓所 at the Angel Valley Retreat Center, 115 miles (180km) north of Phoenix², in October.

"This was a terrible accident, but it was an accident, not a criminal act," said Mr Ray's lawyer, adding that his client was confident of being cleared.

"James Ray cooperated at every step of the way, providing information and witnesses to the authorities showing that no one could have foreseen预见，预知 this accident," said Luis Li.

Dehydration³

Emergency services were called to the sweat lodge蒸汗屋 on 8 October after some of the 50 people at the event reported they were having difficulty breathing.

Two people fainted昏厥 during the ceremony, and died later the same evening, and a third participant died a week later, after being in a coma⁴.

Eighteen people were taken to hospital reportedly suffering from illnesses ranging from dehydration脱水 to kidney failure.

Some participants have said that Mr Ray pushed people to continue taking part in the event, despite their distress⁵.

Mr Ray, who has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and Larry King Live, had rented the centre for his five-day "Spiritual Warrior⁶" event.

Reports said some of the participants had paid up to $9,000 (£5,650) for their stay at the retreat, which also reportedly included a 36-hour fast禁食，斋戒.

Andrea Puckett, whose mother, Liz Neuman, 49, was one of three who died, said she was relieved Mr Ray had been arrested.

"It helps that he is, for now, being stopped from doing what he's doing, from harming anyone else, and that's the biggest relief for me and my family right now," she told the Associated Press.