Accused synagogue burner Stephen Pittman seeks a continuance in his federal trial scheduled for April 6.
A federal grand jury indicted Stephen Spencer Pittman for arson on January 12 after he set fire to Beth Israel Congregation at 3 AM on January 10. The grand jury added two more counts Tuesday for damage to religious property and use of fire to commit a felony.
The charge of damage to religious property carries a maximum penalty of 20 years or less in prison and/or a $20,000 or less fine while the charge of use of fire to commit a felony carries a maximum penalty of a prison sentence of 10 years or less and/or a fine of $250,000 or less. Pittman faces a prison sentence of 5-20 years and/or a fine of up to $250,000 if convicted of arson.
The U.S. District Court denied Pittman bond. He resides at the Madison County Detention Center.
Pittman filed an unopposed motion to continue on March 27. The motion states the defense needs more time to review discovery and investigate the "alleged charges." The Justice Department has no objection.
Kingfish note: This is standard procedure in federal cases as most trials are scheduled to start within a few months to comply with speedy trial laws. The trial are almost always continued so both sides have more time to conduct discovery and prepare for trial.
Synopsis of Case
Pittman allegedly torched Beth Israel Congregation at 3 AM Saturday. The fire burned up the library, destroying two Torahs, and offices. Beth Israel is at 5135 Old Canton Road and was built in 1967.
The FBI arrested Pittman later that day and charged him with arson. An FBI Special Agent's affidavit said Pittman allegedly walked into the building with a gas container. Pittman drove from his Madison home, stopped at Mac's Gas in Ridgeland to fill up a gas container, and continued on to Beth Israel. He completely covered his face and removed his license plate so as to prevent identification.
Once at Beth Israel, Pittman inexplicably texted his father a picture of the rear of Beth Israel and messages such as "There's a furnace in the back," "Btw my plate is off," "Hoodie is on", and "they have the best cameras."
The father begged his son to come home but Spencer Pittman replied he "was due for a home run" and "I did my research." Later that morning, Pittman's father saw he had burns on his hands, ankles, and face. The father confronted his son, who promptly confessed.
The accused arsonist said he broke open a window at Beth Israel, went inside, and set it in fire. Pittman laughed as he told the story to his father, bragging "he finally got them." The little firebug called Beth Israel the "synagogue of Satan", a common trope among anti-Semites.
Pittman's father turned him into the police.
The federal grand jury indicted him several days later for arson. Pittman faces between 5 and 20 years in prison and/or a fine of $250,000 or less if convicted.
A Hinds County grand jury indicted him for arson within 48 hours of the attack as well. Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens seeks an enhancement since the building burned was a place of worship. The enhancement will double the maximum penalty from 30 to 60 years in prison.
3 comments:
He committed the crime on January 12 and his trial was set for April 6?! Wow, talk about a speedy trial. Meanwhile, Jody and Chokwe still haven't gone to trial after a year and a half.
That's a dumb comment. There trial was set for January 6, 2025. Impossible given the volume of discovery so the judge gave them plenty of time to review thousands of pages of documents and hundreds if not thousands of hours of video.
I believe the firebug has had mental illness for several years. His parents being in the medical field should had suspected something was wrong with him and gotten him help. For what ever reasons they didn’t. If they had maybe none of this would ever had happen
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