A Vancouver man was sentenced Friday to 17 months in prison for torching a Vancouver home he shared with his former domestic partner of 16 years.
Timothy C. Meagher, 58, used gasoline to start the fire at 6208 N.E. Wilding Road on June 13 soon after his former partner, James L. Hansen, ended their commitment and asked Meagher to move out of the house.
In an agreement with prosecutors, Meagher pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court on Jan. 29 to first-degree attempted arson. In exchange, Deputy Prosecutor John Farra dropped a first-degree arson charge.
“I apologize to the court,” Meagher said Friday. “It’s very hard for me.”
Meagher’s attorney, George Marlton, said Friday that the intentional fire was a crime of passion sparked by Meagher’s belief that Hansen was having an affair with a woman.
“This was … a lovers’ triangle all underlined by sabotage and deceit,” Marlton said.
Hansen and Meagher were in a committed relationship for 16 years and had a wedding ceremony in 2008 in Maui before same-sex marriage was recognized in Washington, according to a court memorandum by Marlton. They had lived together in Hansen’s house.
Shortly before Hansen asked Meagher to move out of the home, the couple celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary in Maui, Hawaii, Marlton said. Hansen invited the woman to come along on the trip, the defense attorney said.
“The day of the fire, he sees Mr. Hansen and (the woman) together having lunch, and so he figures out they’re having an affair,” Marlton said. “We later found out through investigation that was true.”
“He let his emotions run away with him,” Marlton said.
Marlton said that given Meagher’s lack of previous criminal history, the minimum sentence allowed under the law of 15 3/4 months would be sufficient. Deputy Prosecutor John Farra argued for the 17-month sentence.
Court records claim that Meagher focused on some of Hansen’s most treasured possessions when he started four separate fires in the house. He poured gasoline on Hansen’s favorite recliner and on an heirloom lace tablecloth that had belonged to Hansen’s mother, according to a court affidavit by Clark County sheriff’s Detective Beth Luvera. Another fire was started downstairs in the family room, near the recliner, the documents say.
“There are things that burned up inside that can never be replaced,” Hansen said in a victim’s impact statement, read aloud Friday by victims advocate Amy Harlan. “Some of what was destroyed were items from my parents’ estate. Both my parents have passed on, and they served as treasured memories of our life as a family.”
No injuries were reported.
“The fire marshal in this case … told me that the amount of gas that was used was a tremendous amount,” said Farra. “He was surprised the defendant didn’t hurt himself in the process. The fumes were very strong.”
Hansen was unable to live in the house following the fire and is still working on restoring it, he said in the statement.
“This is an experience I wouldn’t wish on anyone,” he said.
A neighbor, Tim Robinson, saw Meagher enter the house at about 12:45 p.m. About an hour later, he saw smoke wafting from the eaves and called 911.
Meagher was apprehended at a cabin in Cougar owned by his employer, where he had attempted suicide by drinking alcohol and taking pills, Marlton said. A sheriff’s bulletin said Meagher did not have permission to be in the cabin, and a neighbor alerted authorities after noticing a suspicious vehicle parked in front of it.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Gregory Gonzales sentenced Meagher to 18 months of community custody, domestic violence and anger treatment and restitution, which is expected to amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
