Doug, I am not sure if I was looking for anything. I just always find the responses interesting when I present this block of instruction. Having an actual convicted arsonist/firefighter made the presentation more interesting. The fact is, he's a pretty good kid who got caught up in a dangerous game in the firehouse. We made a conscious decision to arrest only those who actively participated in setting fires and not deal with those who knew what was going on and chose to say/do nothing... The mentality was yeah, but they are good firefighters......No, they are criminals.

Anyway, I use:

ATF/CFI Chris Forkner's research paper on the topic.

Deputy Fire Chief Thomas W. Aurnhammer, Los Pinos Fire District, Ignacio Colorado

Geographic Profiler, Rhonda Trahern, ATF
South Carolina Forrestry Research, by Ken Cabe
found on-line at [www.state.sc.us]

Firefighter Arson, a National Volunteer Fire Council Special Report
[www.nvfc.org]

Fire-setting Fire Fighters: Arsonists in the Fire Department - Identification and Prevention by FBI Profiler Tim Huff

Kevin Kelm, ATF profiler

USFA Special Report:Firefighter Arson
[www.usfa.dhs.gov]

As you can see Doug, several of these sources has links that you can go to. I reccomend them all, but especially the USFA report. Mainly because just about all of the other info is contained somewhere in this report.

Remember, if I quote my sources it is research and not plagerism.


Anyway, to further answer your post.

One firefighter was found not guilty on a retrial after the first trial was hung 11-1 for a conviction. That one still bothers me 15 years later because a fireman suffered permenant brain damage in the fire. The jury threw out a confession because he had been drinking at the time he set the fire and you can't believe what a drunk says (of course he was drunk when he set the fires, not when he confessed). He lives up near Clinton or Clifton, NJ now and had been arrested before for arson, but the judge ruled it was prejudicial and was a matter for sentencing so did not allow the info into the trial.

In the big case down here 12 firemen were initially arrested. Two were not prosecuted for lack of evidence, one was a juvenile and not prosecuted and the other 9 pled guilty.

Worked a volunteer fireman in Mississippi that burned down a church. Eventually confessed and got 20 years. Interesting the side notes surrounding this case. The judge in the case was Bobby DeLaughter who was the DA that prosecuted the killer of Civil Rights Leader Medgar Evars. DeLaughter's character was played by Alec Baldwin in the movie about the trial called Ghosts of Mississippi.

The Hinds county courthouse where the arson case was tried was built in 1857 and legend has it in the Civil War during Sherman's march to the sea, as he ordered buildings fields animals and everything in the path of the union army burned and destroyed, he specifically ordered that the courthouse be left untouched due to its tremendous beauty and architecture. Also, the placard on the wall claims one of the earliest attempts at a fire supression system. Sand was placed in the floor between the first and second floors and above the ceiling. The theory was that if a fire broke out it would burn a hole in the ceiling and release tons of sand that would smother the fire. Probably wouldn't work, but pretty innovative/forward thinking for 1857.

Now I forgot what I was talking about.....Oh yes, everyone else was convicted and most confessed.

Dan
Wrote:
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> Your posting seemed to be more of an advance
> notice of your presentation. It certainly sounds
> interesting, but I am not sure what you were
> looking for in terms of comments.
>
> Since you asked... and I have had opinions from
> time to time...
>
> Do we have to change something that is an
> acknowledged guess on your part? Does your
> presentation and experience show that this is a
> prevalent attitude in the fire service? Certainly,
> if it is, then it should not be tolerated. Is a
> paper, based on your presentation available for
> those who can not attend your presentation?
>
> You used the word "arrested" many times in your
> postings. What was the final outcome of these
> arrests? Confessions? Convictions?
>
> Sounds like an interesting talk. Sorry I will not
> be able to attend. I do enjoy a good concert.