After close to an hour of deliberation, a 12-person jury found Ricky Alan Shepherd guilty of trying to set a house on fire in Leesburg in September 2023.
Shepherd, 60, North Webster, was found guilty of attempted arson, a level 4 felony; intimidation, a level 6 felony; resisting law enforcement, a class A misdemeanor; and public intoxication, a class B misdemeanor.
Shepherd's sentencing is set for 10 a.m. Aug. 29. Following the jury's dismissal, Shepherd was remanded into the custody of the Kosciusko County sheriff.
The case continued on Tuesday with defense attorney Jay Rigdon presenting no evidence and resting the defense's case. Shepherd did not testify.
In his final argument, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Sobek said the evidence he presented speaks for itself. He noted a pattern within the case of Shepherd becoming angry whenever he was questioned by officers or the homeowner. Sobek said Shepherd acted in a "concerning manner by casing the scene" and "bragging" by wanting people to know about the plate he burnt near the residence.
"It's not funny, and it's not a joke," said Sobek. "He wanted to burn the house down and tell others about it. Ricky Shepherd meant what he said and he meant what he did."
Rigdon asked the jury to consider if Shepherd took a substantial step toward committing arson. He recalled a personal experience in a college dorm where he had just returned to his room around 3 a.m. when a fire alarm went off. It was later discovered that someone committed arson on the dorm's fifth floor, resulting in multiple injuries to students.
"This fire wasn't even hot enough to burn a whole styrofoam plate," said Rigdon. "Nothing on the home was actually damaged."
Rigdon also said a fire investigator could report about combustion points for various items, but noted no evidence about this was presented in court.
"The state is asking you to guess and that's not good enough," said Rigdon. "There's absolutely no evidence that burning a plate can burn a whole house down."
Rigdon briefly focused on Shepherd's additional charges, asking the jury to judge for itself if Shepherd made threats, resisted law enforcement or was intoxicated in public.
Sobek concluded that Shepherd took actual actions to commit arson, saying the definition of "substantial step" was at the jury's discretion.
"How much closer do you actually get without it being actual arson?" asked Sobek. "When can we intervene ... if it's not here then when? It doesn't matter if it's a bad attempt or incompetence. That's action."