Woman accused of lighting north Spokane neighborhood on fire says it was accident
May 9—A 34-year-old woman accused of starting a fire Wednesday that spread to several properties in a north Spokane neighborhood told police the fire was accidental.
Jessie R. Green, 34, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of first-degree arson and made her first appearance Friday in Spokane County Superior Court, where her bond was set at $5,000.
The fire started in an alley next to a fence on East North Avenue near North Standard Street and spread to a tall pine tree and bushes, sending embers that sparked spot fires and burnt a home and several outbuildings, according to the Spokane Fire Department. No injuries were reported and no residents were displaced, according to the fire department.
Green told police she drove into an alley to go to the bathroom and used a torch to try to burn off string at the bottom of her pant leg, according to court documents. She said she accidentally burned a plastic label and threw it out of her vehicle before driving away, not knowing she started a fire.
Security camera footage from a home in the neighborhood caught an Audi A4 stopping next to the pine tree and Green opening the car door and leaning out, according to court documents. She closed the door, drove away and a fire could be seen moments later.
Police received an automatic license plate reader notification of a vehicle that matched the description of Green's vehicle. The Washington license plate number connected to Green's Spokane home address, where officers found the car parked Thursday, court records show.
Police made a traffic stop on the vehicle at East Fifth Avenue and South Cook Street, where they arrested Green.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Ephrata man arrested in connection with Schwana murder
May 29—EPHRATA — An Ephrata man was booked into the Grant County Jail on suspicion of second-degree murder and drive-by shooting Thursday following the fatal shooting of a 44-year-old man near Schwana late Wednesday night. The victim was from Beverly but his name is not being released yet pending notification of his family. "At this time, we have not been able to locate a next of kin," said Maxwell Yoder, an investigator with the Grant County Coroner's office, early Thursday afternoon. As a result, the victim's name had not been released as of the time of publication Kyle Foreman, public information officer for the Grant County Sheriff's Office, said Angel Luis Olivares, 23, was driving a car that had been identified as a suspect vehicle when he was arrested. Luis Olivares was still listed as in custody on the Grant County Jail's roster as of 5 p.m. Thursday. Foreman said detectives are still interviewing people to determine if the shooting was gang related. The incident was reported at about 10 p.m. Wednesday, Foreman said. The man's body was found in a car on road T.5 Southwest, about three miles north of Schwana. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Schwana is located about seven miles north of Mattawa along State Route 243. Video from cameras near the crime scene identified a suspect vehicle, a white Chrysler 300, Foreman said. Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said another incident involving a white Chrysler 300 was reported in Quincy earlier in the day. Green said QPD officers received multiple reports of shots fired at about 4 p.m. and found multiple shell casings near the intersection of Sixth Avenue Southeast and H Street Southeast. No one was injured in that shooting. Green said QPD officers don't know yet if the two shootings are related, but it is possible. "We're definitely comparing information, for sure," he said. Ephrata Police Department officers found the vehicle suspected in the Schwana shooting and arrested Olivares as he drove to his residence in Ephrata. Olivares was the only person in the car when he was arrested, Foreman said.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
'We have to do right by people': New law updates compensation for the wrongfully convicted
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Oklahoma holds the distinction of being responsible for the longest wrongful conviction incarceration in U.S. history; Glynn Simmons spent almost 50 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit. KFOR has have been reporting on Simmons' case for more than 20 years. In 2023, when he was finally released from prison, the state of Oklahoma allowed for $175,000 for victims of wrongful incarceration. For Simmons, that was less than $10 a day for the time he served behind bars for a crime he didn't do. This week, a bill to provide more compensation for Oklahomans who were served long sentences after wrongful incarceration became law. Phuong Cao fled communist Vietnam to build a better life for his family in America. They came to Oklahoma City for a fresh start in the early 1980s. Cao and his wife, worked multiple jobs to support their five children. In 1991, he was falsely accused and wrongfully convicted. His second oldest daughter, Trang Green, was in the first grade when her father disappeared. 'My mom didn't say anything,' Green remembered. 'She just cried and cried and days went by and like, dad's not home. Something happened to dad, but mom was not saying anything. Then finally my mom took us to a big red building downtown behind a glass window with my dad in a in a jumpsuit. And we're like, what's going like, what's going on?' Cao spent almost ten years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. 'It's bittersweet' exonerated man responds to $7.15M civil rights settlement After his release in 2001, his family fought to prove his innocence, and they did. Cao's accuser recanted her allegation. It was a lie. 'Not only did he suffer, but we all suffered. I don't think a lot of people realize,' Green said. 'And because he was an immigrant, he had a check in with ICE every year, and he was on the deportation list still for something he didn't do. He couldn't even go bury his own father (in Vietnam) while he was fighting for his right to exonerate himself.' Cao is one of 44 oklahomans found to be wrongfully convicted. About half have sought compensation, capped at $175,000. 'Nobody would take $175,000 for ten years of your children's life. Nobody would take that,' said Green. She reached out to her her State Representative, Cyndi Munson (D-Oklahoma City), to talk about a solution for family's like hers. According to an interim study Munson requested years ago, all of the neighboring states around Oklahoma provide compensation tied to the number of years served. 'What's going on in states around Oklahoma? Kansas, Missouri, Texas, Colorado, all do it better,' Munson said. And so, she wrote bill to update Oklahoma's wrongful conviction compensation, which hasn't changed in 20 years. $12.59 billion Oklahoma budget bill heads to governor's desk 'We want to provide compensation that has some dignity because we've taken all of your life opportunities away and taking you away from your family and your community, and we're going to make that right,' she said. Munson's bill, HB 2235, has bipartisan authors and support and provides $50,000 a year for every year of wrongful incarceration, an additional $50,000 a year for time on death row and $25,000 a year for years on parole. Offenders who previously pleaded guilty to a crime, but are later found to be innocent, remain eligible for compensation. 'So it's a huge win for criminal justice reform for Oklahomans and quite frankly, for justice in Oklahoma,' she said. 'This is what Oklahomans are looking for; solve problems of everyday people and find ways to work together, even if you are on different sides of the aisle.' Phuong Cao actually never filed for compensation. The law is not retroactive. For him, it's too late. Almost four decades after he was wrongly accused, after exoneration and naturalization, Cao was finally able to obtain an American passport and travel to Vietnam to see the family he left behind. 'We're talking almost 40 years that he hasn't hugged his mother, and he finally got to do it like three summers ago. It was a tearful, new chapter in this family 40 year long nightmare. Governor Kevin Stitt line-item vetoed two portions of this measure: a mechanism to pay for college tuition and health insurance for the wrongfully convicted. Munson vows to continue to work on those efforts next session. The new law goes into effect July 1. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Louisiana legislator charged with DWI, child endangerment after vehicle crash
Louisiana state Rep. Kyle Green was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and child endangerment after crashing his car with his three children as passengers early Wednesday morning, State Police said. Neither Green nor the children were injured in the single-vehicle crash. The children were released to a family member. USA Today is seeking comment from Green. In a text to USA Today, House Speaker Phillip DeVillier said, "It's an unfortunate situation. He and his family are in my prayers, and we will do everything we can to support his family." Green, a Democrat from Marrero, ran off the road while traveling westbound on U.S. 90 in Jefferson Parish and crashed into a concrete barrier. State Police said when officers arrived on the scene about 2:30 a.m., they noticed signs of impairment. They placed Green under arrest after conducting field sobriety tests. Green refused to provide a breath sample after being transported to the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center, but police secured a search warrant from a judge to obtain blood samples at the jail. Green was charged with first offense DWI, three counts of DWI with child endangerment, careless operation and improper lane use. More: Massive New Orleans jailbreak may have been inside job as attorney general makes arrest Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1. This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Louisiana legislator charged with DWI, child endangerment after crash
