Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
John Baker cried this morning when he told the jury how he learned that his house was on fire.
Baker took the stand in his own defense during his arson trial in Kosciusko Superior Court I. He stands accused of allegedly setting fire to his home Feb. 4, 1997, to benefit from an insurance policy.
He testified that he went to pick up his son from school that day and was approached by the principal. "That's when he told me that I had to go home, that there was a big fire, that my house was on fire," Baker said.
Firefighters were on the scene when he got home. "It was like being in a dream. It was like it wasn't real," Baker said.
He explained that he kept many cleaning products, business supplies and pool supplies in the 6-by-10-foot utility room where the fire broke out. There wasn't much floor space in the room, he said, and dirty laundry was often piled on the floor near the water heater.
When asked directly whether he set fire to his home home, he testified, "I absolutely did not."
The home and contents were destroyed in the fire. The only item saved was a videotape of the interior of the home, showing possessions and recent improvements that had been made.
The tape, while damaged, was repaired and shown to the jury by the prosecutor on the first day of the trial.
A fire investigation expert, firefighters, family members and the principal of his son's school all testified for the defense Wednesday.
Duane Meeker, a forensic engineer with Robson-Lapina Inc. of Indianapolis, told the court that much of his investigation relied upon information he learned from Baker about the Wilcox Road property.
Meeker said he routinely makes contact with whomever has control of the property and the occupant of the home. In this case, it was Baker in both instances.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Byron Tinkey questioned how Meeker could gain unbiased information from the subject of an arson investigation.
"He was able to tell me what was where in the utility room," Meeker said, referring to combustible materials which were reportedly stored in that room. The utility room of the Baker house has been identified as the origin of the fire, but the cause is an ongoing source of debate.
Tinkey has argued that the fire was intentionally set, with three experts testifying that burn patterns on the floor indicate a continuous burn from a flammable liquid being poured on the floor, trailing from the water heater to an exit door and to a kitchen door, as well as a line in front of the washer and dryer and spots in the kitchen.
Meeker said that while a flammable liquid was present in the fire, he believes it was started by spontaneous combustion of turpentine fumes on clothing and/or in a can in the utility room. A flash fire that ignited the fumes then caused clothing in the room to catch fire before the flames consumed the room, including shelves containing cleaning materials. Meeker said many of those cleaners are flammable and, when the shelves were burned away, the bottles and cans fell to the floor and probably spilled.
Also, Meeker said he believed the burn patterns on the floor were caused by radiant heat pressing down from the ceiling due to the intensity of the fire and that the fact that there was evidence of more than one fire could be attributed to falling debris starting new areas of the home on fire at the floor. The fire spread throughout the home.
During Meeker's testimony, defense attorney Jay Rigdon showed a videotaped segment of an episode of "Prime Time Live" concerning gas water heaters combusting fumes from gasoline. The news program noted an instance - in a controlled environment - in which one-quarter gallon of gasoline was poured onto the floor several feet from a normally operating water heater. It took 15 seconds for the water heater, with pilot and burner firing, to ignite the fumes from the gasoline. The flash fire that resulted caught the clothing of a mannequin on fire.
While the "Prime Time" example had gasoline deliberately poured on the floor, Meeker said, he couldn't prove there was intent in the Baker fire and, therefore, "I could not as an investigator call this an incendiary fire."
Meeker did admit his belief that weather conditions can destroy evidence, but gave no explanation as to how he could reach his decision as to the cause of the fire when he never visited the scene until April or May of 1998 except to say that he relied upon photographs and other evidence previously gathered, as well as talking with Baker and reviewing fire department reports. A hole burned through the roof was uncovered when Meeker arrived for his investigation, and it is not known how long it was uncovered.
Baker's brother-in-law and former business partner, Walter Legits, provided his testimony in the case via a videotaped deposition. Legits, who now lives in Colorado, was in Indiana last fall when the case ended in a mistrial for lack of ability to seat a jury.
Legits testimony focused on the fact that he was with Baker throughout the day of the fire and left Baker's home a couple hours before the fire was reported. The two men were working together building a garage not far from Baker's home and were to be at Legits' North Webster home for a birthday party about 3:30 p.m. The 911 call reporting the fire came in about 3:13 p.m.
Legits picked up Baker's younger son from the babysitter and Baker took a shower and ran some errands before going to pick up his older son from school.
Legits said he learned about the fire when Baker's babysitter and neighbor called him. Baker, according to Eisenhower Elementary School principal Chris Gensinger, learned about the fire when he arrived at the school. The babysitter had also called the school regarding the fire.
Gensinger said Baker appeared surprised when notified of the fire and left the school without taking his son with him. Legits, who arrived back at Baker's house before Baker did, said Baker drove onto the front lawn of his property, got out of his truck, threw his arms up, fell to his knees and began to cry when he saw the fire.
Baker's mother, Mary Hall of Las Vegas, Nev., also testified her son was upset when she spoke with him that night.
"He was devastated," Hall said. "That was his house, his home. He worked hard."
Both Legits and Hall testified that they had smelled gas fumes in the utility rooms on prior visits to the home but had no knowledge whether anyone was ever called to check for a leak.
The defense rested this morning, followed by rebuttal evidence by the state and closing arguments set for this afternoon.
If convicted, Baker faces six to 20 years in prison on the Class B felony charge.
