State v. Simmons
1984 Mo. App. LEXIS 4938, 680 S.W.2d 308 (1984)
Rule of Law:
A fire, however minor, that actually communicates to the wooden structure of a house or to a porch attached to an inhabitable structure constitutes "damage to an inhabitable structure" for the crime of arson in the first degree.
Facts:
- On August 18, 1983, at approximately 7:00 p.m., Gurlly went to a house on Lee Avenue in the City of St. Louis to see his girlfriend, Terry Gurlly.
- Gurlly had been drinking, and Terry Gurlly refused to allow him into the house.
- Gurlly then accused Terry Gurlly of waiting for another man, cursed her, threw a bottle against the house, threatened he was going to set the house on fire, and left.
- A short time later, Terry Gurlly’s mother saw flames, and Terry Gurlly went to the back door and discovered the porch was on fire.
- As Terry Gurlly extinguished the fire with several pots of water, she heard Gurlly outside saying, “You didn’t think I was going to do it.”
- Police and fire department investigators found a beer bottle, of the same brand Gurlly was drinking, containing gasoline next to the porch steps, along with a burned match and a matchbook.
- Terry Gurlly testified that the porch, steps, screen door, and the exterior wall of the house were burned, and Ronda Gurlly testified that the kitchen linoleum floor was burned.
- Detective Griggs testified that the fire charred the threshold of the back door, and samples of charred wood from the threshold were admitted into evidence.
Procedural Posture:
- Gurlly was convicted of arson in the first degree, a violation of § 569.040, RSMo.1978, in a trial court and subsequently sentenced to ten years imprisonment.
- Gurlly appealed his conviction to the Missouri Court of Appeals, contending that the state failed to make a submissible case (i.e., that there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction).
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Issue:
Does evidence showing that a fire burned a house's porch, exterior wall, and back door threshold constitute "damage to an inhabitable structure" sufficient to support a conviction for arson in the first degree under Missouri law?
Opinions:
Majority - Reinhard, Chief Judge
Yes, evidence showing that a fire burned a house's porch, exterior wall, and back door threshold constitutes "damage to an inhabitable structure" sufficient to support a conviction for arson in the first degree under Missouri law. The court affirmed Gurlly's conviction, finding no merit in his contention that only the porch, and not an "inhabitable structure," was damaged. The court provided two reasons: First, there was direct evidence that the fire burned the wooden structure of the house itself, specifically charring the back door's threshold and burning the exterior wall. Citing State v. Kelso, the court reiterated that if any part of the house, however trifling, is burned, it is sufficient for arson. Second, the court looked to State v. Pierce, which held that the burning of a porch attached to a building constituted damage to the building for the purposes of arson. Therefore, the court concluded that the burning of a porch attached to an "inhabitable structure" constitutes the burning of an "inhabitable structure" under § 569.040.1, RSMo.1978. The state therefore made a submissible case.
Analysis:
This case clarifies the interpretation of "damage to an inhabitable structure" within Missouri's arson statute, reinforcing that damage, even if minor, to an attached structural component like a porch, or to any part of the main building's wooden structure, satisfies the statutory element. It ensures that arson convictions do not hinge solely on the extent of property destruction but on the act of intentionally communicating fire to an inhabitable structure. This broad interpretation provides prosecutors with a clear legal basis for pursuing arson charges in cases where the fire is contained or limited, preventing defendants from avoiding liability based on minimal structural impact.
