Opinion ID: 2336953
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Evidence of Arson

Text: As for the charge of arson, Lowry argues that the evidence was insufficient to prove that the fire that burned Sandra's and Kim's cars was intentionally set. Arkansas Code Annotated § 5-38-301 (Repl. 1997) provides in pertinent part: (a) A person commits arson if he starts a fire or causes an explosion with the purpose of destroying or otherwise damaging: (1) An occupiable structure or motor vehicle that is the property of another person[.] Lowry submits that there was only circumstantial evidence that the fire was actually set by someone. He urges that there was just as much plausible evidence that the fire was caused by an electrical short resulting from the installation of the stereo equipment in Kim's car earlier that day. He contends that the evidence presented by the State was not sufficient to overcome the common-law presumption against arson. See Ross v. State, 300 Ark. 369, 779 S.W.2d 161 (1989). He is mistaken. The evidence showed that on the night of the fire, both Sandra and Kim heard a loud noise outside their window around 1:00 a.m. Kim testified: I just heard a noise like `whoosh' outside my bedroom window, and it lit up orange. Sandra described hearing a horrible loud roar. She explained: It was just roaring. It was like if you threw gasoline on a fire, how it roars real loud. If it's a lot at one time. After she heard the roar, she observed that her window was glowing. Sandra also testified that she smelled gasoline at the scene after the tow-truck driver hauled the cars away from the scene. Richard Blair, the East End District Fire Chief, testified that although he was not able to determine the precise cause of the fire, he noted that Kim's vehicle was completely engulfed in fire, from the front of the hood to the firewall area. He indicated that the fire started at the front of the vehicle and was making its way back toward the passenger compartment. He stated that, in his experience, a gasoline fire makes a loud whooshing sound when it ignites and it burns quickly. An electrical fire, on the other hand, will start out rather small, especially in a low-voltage vehicle like Kim's, and would burn more slowly than a gasoline fire. The start of an electrical fire would sound more like a pop. Based on his experience, Blair opined that if a witness heard a whoosh sound, it would be more likely that the fire was started with gasoline or some other equivalent accelerant. James Heath, the tow-truck driver who removed the burned cars from the scene, testified that when he loaded the vehicles onto his flatbed truck, he noticed that gas was pouring out of one of the vehicle's gas line onto the ground. He explained that he loaded the vehicles by hooking up a wench and lifting them from the rear, thus raising the gas tanks and causing the gas to pour out of the lines. He also stated that he could smell gas for days at the impound lot where he had towed the vehicles. In addition to the foregoing, the State presented evidence showing that it was Lowry who started the fire. Deputy Tony Baugh, of the Saline County Sheriff's Department, and Reserve Deputy Christi Preator positively identified Lowry's truck as being parked in an area within walking distance of the scene and within minutes of the time the fire started. They testified that they were on routine patrol of the area when they saw the fire. On their way to the scene, they noticed a gold GMC pickup truck with a ladder rack parked on the side of the road, just down the hill from the fire. Baugh recognized the truck, but he did not initially recall the owner's name. They shined their spotlight on the truck and observed it for twenty or thirty seconds, during which time they noticed a person standing at the back of the driver's side wearing jeans and brown and black hiking boots. They thought it was probably just someone relieving himself, and they headed on to the fire. Once Baugh and Preator arrived at the scene, Sandra reported that Mike Lowry had started the fire. It was at that point that it occurred to Baugh whose truck he had just seen. Once he made sure that everyone was out of harm's way and that the fire was under control, he drove back down the hill to see if the truck was still there, but it was gone. A couple of hours later, the officers, along with Saline County Sheriff's Detective Jimmy Long, went to Lowry's house. There, they found the truck they had seen previously, and they noted that the hood was still warm. They also discovered in Lowry's bedroom the brown and black hiking boots they had seen with the truck. Finally, there was evidence that only hours before the fire Lowry was overheard to say: They're going to burn for this shit. There was also evidence from Sandra that during their fight on May 28, Lowry told her: I have a lighter . . . I will light your house, I will light your son's house, and I will light your mother's house with them in it[.] The foregoing constitutes sufficient evidence that the fire of the two vehicles was purposely set by a person and that Lowry was that person. As stated above, to be substantial, circumstantial evidence need only exclude every reasonable hypothesis than that of the guilt of the accused. Stewart, 362 Ark. 400, 208 S.W.3d 768; Harper, 359 Ark. 142, 194 S.W.3d 730. Whether such evidence does exclude every other such reasonable hypothesis is for the jury to decide. Id. Because we conclude that the jury in this case did not need to resort to speculation or conjecture in reaching its verdict, we affirm the conviction for arson.