There were an estimated 160,000 fires of suspicious origin in 1978; they damaged $1.1 billion in property and took the lives of 930 civilians. After several years of decline, the number of fires rose to 154,500 in 1981. The number of fires increased again slightly in 1985 and 1993. In 2000, there were 75,000 fires of criminal or suspicious origin, which resulted in an estimated $1.3 billion in property damage and the deaths of 505 civilians. As the number of structural fires generally declined, the value of the property damaged often was on the increase, particularly from 1990 to 1993.
The number of vehicle fires has not shown the same level of decline. The number of fires fell only 3% in the period shown, from 48,000 incidents in 1978 to 46,500 incidents in 2000. Does torching cars "pay"? Is this some segment of crime that has and always will be with us? In many of these fires, a type of insurance fraud known as "owner give-ups" is thought to be at work. In owner give-ups, the owner reaches an agreement with an accomplice to leave a vehicle at a certain location so it can be stolen. The partner strips the car for parts and sets it on fire; the owner collects the insurance. Some areas have taken steps to combat the torching of vehicles. In 1987, officials in Boston passed the Burned Motor Vehicle Law; it requires the owner of a burned car or truck to fill out a form at the local fire station. This added step in the insurance claim appears to have been an effective deterrent. Motor vehicle arson in the area then fell 80% from 5,500 incidents in 1986 to 1,093 in 1995.
What motivates a person to set fires? Property crimes often seem to be driven by the health of the economy. Some of that is apparent here. The number of vehicle fires increased just before the recession of 1980 and during the recession of 1982. But the number of arson fires overall fell during the period. The motives behind arson are often more complex than simply financial gain.
The National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC) located at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia has identified six major classifications of motives for arson:
• Vandalism • Revenge
• Profit • Extremist Action
• Crime Concealment • Thrill, Excitement Seeking
Vandalism is perhaps the most easily understood motive. The offender intends to do damage. The most common targets are schools or their related property. The Profit motive arises when the arsonist destroys property or inventory to collect insurance. He may set a fire as a means to gain employment. Or he may get Mom to do it: Recently, the mother of a North County, California firefighter was convicted of setting five fires in the Shasta-Trinity National Forests so her son could get more overtime and hazardous-duty pay. There are also cases of private contractors of water tankers, bulldozers, and delivery trucks setting fires to boost the need for their services.
Another common reason for a fire is to conceal the evidence of crime — be that a burglary or homicide. Or the arson may be concealing wrongdoing by burning his business records.
Some fires are set from a wish to extract revenge. Fires are directed at a particular person: the fired worker angry at his boss, an evicted tenant striking at a landlord, a spurned lover evening the score. An arsonist may have some grievance with the government, a church, the academic world, the military, or a group of people. These fires are considered to be set for extremist reasons. A National Church Arson Task Force has opened 945 investigations on attacks on houses of worship between January 1995 and September 1998 (church arson became a federal crime in 1996). In 1998, a group called the Earth Liberation Front set fires to a ski lodge in Vail, Colorado because the lodge was encroaching on the habitat of lynxes (they did $12 million in damage).
Some fires are set from a thirst for excitement. This category includes bored teenagers seeking thrills or loners recognition. This latter reason is an example of something often called the "Hero Syndrome." The offender becomes a local hero for spotting a fire no one else sees — a fire he has set. An offender may also set fires out of sexual excitement, but such a motivation, according to the FBI, is rather rare.
Arsonists are usually young. According to the FBI, juveniles were involved in 45% of arson incidents cleared by law enforcement in 2000. About 85% of arsonists are male and 80% are white. In a 1988 Department of Justice study, 31% of prison inmates whose most serious offense was arson were under the influence of illegal drugs when they committed their crimes; 39% of inmates had used drugs in the month before their offense.
Arson is not just damaged property — scarred forests or damaged buildings. Over 15,000 civilians have lost their lives in arson fires from 1978-2000. Only 17% of these cases were solved in 2000.
Source: Chart data comes from Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics Online, located at http://www.albany.edu/sourcedrivingoffenses.com; also John R. Hall, Jr. U.S. Arson Trends and Patterns (Quincy, MA; National Fire Protection Association, 2001), pp. 12-14, 16-17; and Michael J. Karter Jr., Fire Loss in the United States During 2000 (Quincy, MA; National Fire Protection Association, 2001); John R. Hall Jr. "The Truth about arson." and "classifications of motivations of arsonists." Retrieved from http://www.interfire.org; "Fire deaths down 35% in state; car arson dips." Retrieved from http://www.s-t.com/daily/10-96/10-15-96/a03sr016.htm; "Money burns." From http://www.motherjones.com; Jo Moreland, "Arson." Retrieved from http://iii.org. "Arson Case Serves as Warning, Fire Officials Say." North Country Times, Apri15, 2002. Data retrieved October 10, 2002.
User Comments Add a comment…