What Motivated Arson

1934 Words4 Pages

Arson

Arson is the criminal act of burning or charring property on purpose. The act of arson may include such acts as setting fire to a property maliciously, or burning a property with the intent to collect insurance money. While most people consider arson to be the burning of buildings, it may also be the burning of cars, boats, personal property, and land. According to common law, there are certain elements required to determine a fire to be caused by arson. These elements of arson include (1) the malicious, (2) burning, (3) of a dwelling, (4) belonging to another. Most states define different degrees of arson depending on the circumstances surrounding the act. This includes factors such as whether the building was occupied at the time …show more content…

Aggravated Arson
In many states, a charge of arson may be upgraded to “aggravated arson,” which is decided based on whether the accused anticipated a person being inside the building when they started the fire. The primary consideration in classifying aggravated arson is malicious intent. Intent may be caused by financial distress, anger, and other issues that would trigger some-ones emotions. Aggravated arson is the same as First Degree Arson in some states, and may include the burning of a building to obtain an insurance settlement, or the setting of a fire for the purpose of harming another person, or to cause fear.
Reckless Arson
While most people consider arson to be the intentional setting of fires, reckless behavior that leads to the destruction of property by fire may also lead to arson charges. Reckless arson can happen to anyone. If you go to a park that prohibits camp fires and you then in fact start one and it gets away from you, then you could be tried for reckless arson. In many jurisdictions, reckless arson not only subjects the perpetrator to criminal charges, but he may be required to pay the high cost of fire suppression.

Accidental …show more content…

Many different types of motives lead people to commit arson. Some of the motives might be revenge, or people seeking a thrill, covering up a crime that has already been commited, and emotional issues. Although there are a lot of possible motives the most common reason that people will commit arson is part of a greater plan, general they are trying to commit insurance fraud. People who burn their own property are most likely looking to commit insurance fraud. People commit insurance fraud because they need money. People also commit arson for insurance fraud when the property that they own becomes not worth as much as what they hoped for due to external factors like the market. It is very common to hear of houses that are half way done being burned to the ground. This is generally because the contractor is going to make more money off the insurance company rather than selling the house when it’s completed or he doesn’t have the money to complete the

More about What Motivated Arson

Open Document