Man sentenced to 5 years probation for lighting apartment on fire
Paul Morphew
Courtesy of Saline Police Department
Paul Morphew will spend the next five years on probation for trying to start his Saline apartment on fire.
He won't, however, spend anymore time in jail. Judge David Swartz sentenced the 22-year-old Saline man Thursday in the Washtenaw County Trial Court to the probation, fines and 166 days time served in jail.
"This experience has changed my life," Morphew told the judge.
In March, Morphew was charged with arson in a dwelling for trying to burn down his apartment building by starting a fire with his stove.
In exchange for his no contest plea in July, a charge of arson of personal property between $1,000 and $20,000 and a charge of possession or sale of a switchblade were dropped. Morphew will pay $5,272.32 in restitution.
According to past AnnArbor.com reports, on March 7 Morphew called Ann Arbor police and reported there was going to be a fire at his apartment. Ann Arbor officials contacted Saline police, who responded to the 200 block of Clark Street in Saline and found thick smoke coming from the building.
All four burners on the stove had been lit and papers were burning on top of them, according to police. Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze. John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
Cathy
Sat, Sep 1, 2012 : 7:13 p.m.
A man calls the police and says there is going to be a fire? What on earth is wrong with this guy? This story just doesn't make sense.
Ricebrnr
Sat, Sep 1, 2012 : 3:41 p.m.
is a lifetime ban on any stoves, lighters, paper and other flammables part of the plea bargain? It should be..
Captain Magnificent
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 5 p.m.
To those of you speculating as to his motive: my guess is that he was moving but didn't want to have to pack all his stuff. He probably figured burning it all up would allow him to get a fresh start, especially if he's insured. I can't blame him- have you ever moved? what a pain in the ass.
Greg
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 3:26 p.m.
No motive was really stated. Just a bid for attention??? Endangering the safety of the other apartment dwellers is no small thing. To bad caneing is not an option as it might penatrate a thick skull.
Rich
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 2:09 p.m.
Did he happen to say _why_ he did this? Was he just being a pyro, or was he hating his life, etc etc? We have answers to "who, what, when, where" but we don't have the "why."
Lovaduck
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 4:50 p.m.
I was thinking the same thing. Is he receiving counseling at least if this was some sort of psychotic episode---I'm not saying it was--but we don't get many answers here.
Billy
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 11:37 a.m.
Well at least he DID serve almost half a year...still seems a little lax considering his selfish behavior put the lives of everyone in that apartment building at risk. Honestly this is less than a slap on the wrist. Fines are mentioned in the beginning of the article but no figure is given. Does that mean the judge fined him the minimum?
simply amazed
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 : 1:57 p.m.
"Morphew will pay $5,272.32 in restitution." Does restitution include fines or just the cost for the damage?