LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – A judge sentences a former Leavenworth, Indiana, firefighter to approximately four years' probation for setting fires in Crawford County last year.
Court records show Brian L. Stonecipher pleaded guilty to two counts of arson and one count of attempted arson in June. On Tuesday, Crawford Circuit Judge Sabrina Bell sentenced Stonecipher to 485 days for each charge to be served consecutively. She dismissed a charge of criminal mischief, according to a clerk at circuit court.
The judge suspended approximately one year of the sentence and gave credit for days Stonecipher spent in jail or on home incarceration after his arrest last fall. In addition to probation, Stonecipher must complete 120 hours community service, stay away from properties damaged in the crimes, stay away from the Leavenworth Fire Department and rescind his state firefighting certification, Crawford County prosecutor Nicholas Haverstock said.
"It's a fair and reasonable" resolution to the case, Haverstock said, referring to the plea agreement and sentence.
Police arrested Stonecipher, then 27 years old, on Nov. 2, 2016. They said Stonecipher set the fires and later responded to put them out as a firefighter.
He was originally accused in 15 arsons, including one on Hoosier National Forest property and two attempted fires at a vacant church. The three charges to which he pleaded guilty included one count of attempted arson for damage to a church. Crawford County residents had become nervous in late October after reports of at least eleven brush fires in the county in a less than a week.
Reporter's note: This story updates a previous story that incorrectly said the sentences were concurrent and adds further details and a quote from the prosecutor. --Chris Turner
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