Three residents rewarded in arson cases

Nov. 14—Arson is a difficult crime to prove, but it's much easier when there are people who come forward with information leading to an arrest and conviction of those responsible.

Such was the case earlier this year in Baldwin County when three people, two women and a man, came forward with information that led to two people being convicted and sentenced to prison terms for intentionally setting fires.

The three residents talked with The Union-Recorder recently on the condition that their names and pictures not appear in the newspaper.

"It feels good because I did the right thing," one woman said. "We're getting rewarded because we did the right thing."

The other woman echoed those sentiments.

"We told the truth because it was just the right thing to do," the second woman said.

One woman said there's no reason to lie about something someone did that's wrong.

"They say the truth will set you free," she said.

The man shared many of those same beliefs.

"I feel good about what I did, and I feel the guy who set the fire deserved to do some time in prison for what he did," the man said.

All three of them stressed the importance of telling the truth.

"It helps to put bad people where they belong," one of the women said.

One woman said she planned to save the $5,000 reward money she received from the Georgia Arson Control, while the other woman said she would save most of her reward money and catch up on a couple of bills.

The man, meanwhile, said he was going to spend the majority of his reward money to purchase a pickup truck.

The trio received $1,450 in reward money. Checks were presented to each of the recipients from the Georgia Arson Control.

A special ceremony was held at Baldwin County Fire Rescue headquarters to honor the three local residents.

Neither of the arson reward recipients had to testify against the defendants in court. Both defendants pleaded guilty to the crime of arson. One of the defendants was sentenced to 20 years in prison by Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit Chief Superior Court Judge Brenda H. Trammell. The other defendant received a 10-year prison sentence by Superior Court Judge Stephen A. Bradley.

Both arson cases were investigated by Baldwin County Fire Rescue Capt. Bradley Towe.

"On behalf of Baldwin County Fire Rescue, the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office and the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office, I want to thank all of you for coming forward and giving us the statements you did about these arson cases," Towe told the recipients. "I know sometimes it's hard to come forward, especially if it's a family member or a friend, but y'all did willingly, and it made all the difference in the world. It made my case easier, and it made the cases easier to prosecute by the district attorney's office."

Towe told them that he deeply appreciated what they did.

"That's why the Georgia Arson Control is going to reward you for what you did," Towe said.

LeCroy echoed what Towe told those who were honored.

"I want to thank each of you for helping Baldwin County authorities solve these two arson cases, and taking these people off the streets and thus making Baldwin County a safer place for everyone," LeCroy said. "These checks are just a token to say thank you for what you did."

Towe said the willingness of these three individuals to come forward and to provide statements made all the difference in the world in solving the two arson cases.

"Without those statements, I don't know that one of these cases could have even been solved," Towe said.

District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale III said when law enforcement officers and the fire department work such cases, it's imperative to have community involvement.

"We've got some excellent law enforcement, and excellent investigators with our fire departments, and a great D.A.'s office full of very capable attorneys," Barksdale said. "But we've got to have community involvement. We've got to have people willing to say, 'I live in Baldwin County, and I'm not going to tolerate what's going on, and I'm going to stand up despite the ramifications that may come, I'm going to stand up and do what's right, and make this community better."

Barksdale called each of the recipients heroes for taking a stance against crime.