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Closing arguments were made this morning in the trial of David Francis, the man accused of helping his cousin burn down a house.
The 12-member jury will decide if Francis is guilty of aiding arson resulting in bodily injury, a Class A felony. He is accused of helping Roger Hale set the fire that destroyed Hale's house on Sept. 24, 1996.
The state finished its case Tuesday afternoon after calling two firemen to the stand for expert testimony.
Ron Klein, who investigated the fire for a Fort Wayne laboratory, testified that he believed the evidence pointed to arson. He said that since accidental causes for the fire were ruled out, the fire was caused by arson.
Brooke Murphy, lead investigator for Squad 70, also testified that the fire was not accidental. Squad 70 is the countywide team of firefighters who volunteer to investigate suspicious fires.
Murphy was at the scene to investigate on Sept. 24 and talked to both Hale and Francis when they arrived at the fire scene. Murphy interviewed Francis again on Jan. 8, 1997, when Francis was arrested on an unrelated charge and made a statement to police.
Detective Sgt. Sam Whitaker, of the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department, testified that Francis gave police a statement that said he and Hale allegedly set fire to the house.
"I know without a doubt that Roger is the one that started that fire," Francis' statement read.
Francis was the only witness in his defense Tuesday afternoon. He argued that he was intoxicated when he was arrested Jan. 8 and didn't remember making the statement.
But Whitaker's earlier testimony said Francis was booked into Kosciusko County Jail at 1:55 a.m. and Whitaker did not interview him until 10:07 a.m.
In his closing, defense lawyer David Heritier questioned the testimony of Michael Blair, the firefighter who claims he was injured fighting the fire. Heritier exhibited a doctor's letter saying that Blair had a pre-existing knee injury from another fire.
Blair claimed he banged his knee on a windowsill at Hale's house. The injury later required surgery and physical therapy.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Byron Tinkey told the jury in his closing statement that every cause of a possible accidental fire was ruled out, leaving only arson. Tinkey also pointed out that testimony from all the firefighters and investigators suggested the fire was set.
Hale was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison for the crime of arson causing bodily injury. If convicted, Francis would face the same penalty.
