Benjie Sanders / Arizona Daily Star via AP

Lewis Taylor shakes hands with his first attorney from 1972, Howard Kashman, as his current defense team surrounds him after a hearing in Pima County Superior Court in Tucson, Ariz., on Tuesday April 2.

An Arizona man who has maintained for 42 years that he had nothing to do with a horrific hotel fire that killed more than two dozen people pleaded no contest Tuesday in a deal that set aside his original conviction and freed him from prison.

"Welcome back, Mr. Taylor," Tucson Superior Court Judge Richard Fields said after accepting 59-year-old Louis Cuen Taylor's plea on Tuesday, reported The Arizona Daily Star. The plea deal gives him credit for time already served.

"It feels good to just feel Mother Earth underneath my feet, free Mother Earth," Taylor said as he walked out of prison later in the day, The Arizona Republic reported.

Taylor was just 16 years old when he was sentenced to multiple consecutive life sentences for a fire that ripped through the Pioneer Hotel, a Tucson landmark that went up in flames in December 1970 while employees of an aircraft company were there for a Christmas party. 

The only person to speak on behalf of the hotel victims on Tuesday was Paul D'Hedouville II, whose father was killed when he was 4.

"Mr. Taylor, I stand in front of you today to say I harbor no feeling of ill will or grievance against you," D'Hedouville said, according to The Daily Star. "Do not waste your new beginning at life."

Taylor, who is black, claims police pinned the crime on him and an all-white jury gave him an unfair trial. A 2002 examination of his case by CBS' "60 Minutes" found evidence that he had been railroaded and led volunteer legal group The Arizona Justice Project to take on his case.

The blaze killed 29 people: Some jumped to their deaths, others were trapped in their rooms because fire truck ladders weren't long enough to reach upper floors, but most victims died from carbon-monoxide poisoning inside the hotel.

Will Seberger / Zuma Press

Louis Cuen Taylor leaves state prison in Tucson, Ariz., on Tuesday, April 2, after having served 42 years.

Taylor had been sentenced to 28 consecutive life sentences — one for each murder count leveled against him. The twenty-ninth victim died months later from injuries he got in the fire; Taylor was never charged in that victim's death. He didn't show any visible reaction on Tuesday as he accepted the plea deal, The Associated Press reported.

He had been at the hotel that night because he was trying to score some free food and drinks from the Christmas revelers, according to "60 Minutes." Once the fire broke out, police officers and rescue teams asked Taylor to bang on doors and help injured guests get out. Hours later, he was blamed for setting the blaze.

Taylor was interrogated without a lawyer present. The lead fire investigator on the case, Cy Holmes, determined in 1970 that the cause of the fire was arson.

In the "60 Minutes" investigation, Arizona Justice Project lawyers said newer fire techniques found that the cause of the fire was "undetermined" — that there was no proof beyond a reasonable doubt that it had been arson.

Holmes, the lead fire investigator, admitted in a 2002 deposition that his profile of potential suspects included race.

"He's probably a negro, and he's probably 18," he said he told the City Council after the fire, based on years of experience he had investigating arson cases.

Holmes, now 83, told The Associated Press on Monday he still stands by his determination that the fire was arson. 

"There's no question about it," he said. He added that the new findings by Taylor's defense experts are based on incomplete information because a lot of the evidence was destroyed. "They didn't spend two full days digging through that place."

Taylor has always maintained his innocence, and he struggled with the decision to plead no contest on Tuesday, an agreement he reached with prosecutors.

"He initially rejected it," Arizona Justice Project Executive Co-director Katie Puzauskas said, reported The Daily Star.

His plea in a Tucson courtroom came before relatives of some of the victims, reported The Daily Star.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Tue Apr 2, 2013 10:25 AM EDT

nbclosangeles.com

Rickie Lee Fowler

An arsonist convicted on five first-degree murder counts in connection with the deadly 2003 Old Fire above San Bernardino was sentenced Monday to death.

Judge Michael Smith confirmed the sentence, recommended by a jury in September, for Rickie Lee Fowler. The judge had the option of life in state prison without possibility of parole.

Five men died after heart attacks suffered during evacuations forced by the 91,000 acre fire.  Fowler was convicted in August on the murder counts and two arson counts.

Read more at NBC Los Angeles

The Old Fire was one of several wildfires that burned in California in October 2003. Fowler fell under suspicion when witnesses reported seeing a passenger in a van toss burning objects into dry brush. Investigators interviewed Fowler several months after the fire, but did not have enough evidence to file charges until six years after the fire.

Fowler was already in prison on a burglary conviction at the time charges were filed. The van's driver was later shot and killed in an unrelated incident.

The Old Fire also damaged more than 1,000 homes.

"Today, after nearly ten years, justice has now been secured for the victims and their families, and those whose lives were affected by the actions of Rickie Lee Fowler," said San Bernardino District Attorney Michael Ramos.

Andrew Kelly / Reuters

Fire crews tend to a fire in a residential complex at 41 spring street in New York Jan. 10. Authorities reported that the fire was a result of suspected arson and that one fatality was confirmed.

A man accused of intentionally starting a deadly five-alarm fire inside a SoHo apartment building after a domestic dispute with his child's mother may have lit several small fires in the hallway and apartment that eventually spread, NBC 4 New York has learned. 

Wei Chu Wu, 45, is charged with first-degree arson, second-degree murder and second-degree attempted assault of a police officer for allegedly fighting with first responders to keep them from entering the building at 41 Spring St. as the flames spread. A police officer suffered a broken hand in the confrontation, NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said.

Witnesses said they saw the suspect start a fire in the second-floor hallway about 6:40 p.m. Thursday after he got into an argument with a woman described by officials as the mother of his child. A source familiar with the investigation tells NBC 4 New York that he also may have lit other fires inside the apartment.

The fire quickly spread to the roof, and by the time firefighters arrived on the scene, the back of the building was fully engulfed, according to FDNY Chief of Fire Operations James Esposito. The fire wiped out the entire stairwell between the second and fifth floors of the building.

Read original story at NBCNewYork.com

The person who died was on an upper floor at the time of the fire, Esposito said. Law enforcement officials said the body was so badly burned they haven't been able to identify the deceased person.

The suspect's child and the child's mother are accounted for.

Wu was awaiting arraignment and it was not immediately clear whether he had a lawyer.

About 200 firefighters responded to the blaze, which was declared under control after about three hours. Two civilians and seven firefighters suffered minor injuries. 

A firefighter from Los Angeles who was on vacation in New York City first noticed the fire from across the street and rushed over to help. The suspect tried to keep him out, and proceeded to fight with the first responders who arrived on the scene.

"He knocked me one time, didn't want me to go in the second time," the firefighter told NBC 4 New York on Friday.

The building is mixed retail-residential, with a Pinkberry frozen yogurt shop occupying the ground floor.

Updated at 10:46 p.m. ET: The huge explosion that flattened homes and killed two people on Nov. 10 in Indianapolis is now being investigated as a homicide case, authorities said at a press conference Monday night.

Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry appealed to the public for information about a white van that was seen in the area, NBC affiliate WTHR reported. He said the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting with the case.

"While the fire investigation has been progressing, there has been a parallel investigation, not solely focusing on the cause of the explosion but focusing on individuals who may have been responsible once accidental causes were eliminated," Curry said. "That investigation has consisted of numerous interviews with various individuals as well as execution of a number of search."

The interviews and search warrants are why the investigation is considered an active criminal homicide investigation, Curry said.

Jennifer Longworth, 36, and Dion Longworth, 34, were killed when their house collapsed on them. The couple lived next door to the house where the explosion happened.

Eighty-one homes out of 125 in the subdivision were also damaged, according to the Indianapolis Star. More than half the homes were deemed unsafe and the city asked that they be boarded up by the end of the day on Monday.

The blast originated in the house of Monserrate Shirley, a 47-year-old nurse. Shirley was out of town at a casino with her boyfriend when the blast occurred, authorities said. Her 12-year-old daughter was staying with friends. Their cat had been boarded before the blast, according to the Star.

Darron Cummings / AP file

Two people were killed and nearly three dozen homes were damaged or destroyed in an explosion on Nov. 10 in Indianapolis. Authorities say they are now investigating the blast as a criminal homicide.

In a tearful interview with the Star, Shirley said: “I’m devastated. I don’t sleep. I don’t eat. I’m just shocked like everybody else. It’s like waking up to this bad dream. I mean I wish I was there, I would be dead. I wouldn’t need to be asked any questions.”

Monday's announcement came hours after the funeral service for the  Longworths.

Southwest Elementary, where Jennifer Longworth worked as a second-grade teacher, was closed Monday so students and teachers could attend the service. The funeral took place at St. Barnabas Catholic Church, where the Longworths were married 11 years ago, according to the Star.

Meanwhile, some 20 firefighters and police officers carefully and slowly combed the blast site, hunting for clues in the debris.

Crimestoppers is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. The ATF promises a $10,000 reward leading to an arrest and conviction.

NBC's Isolde Raftery contributed to this report. 

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Peter Waraska was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison for setting a fire that killed a couple.

A former Connecticut volunteer firefighter has been sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison after pleading guilty to setting a fatal 1986 fire in East Windsor. 

For more visit NBCConnecticut.com.

Peter Waraksa, 50, pleaded guilty on Thursday to two counts of negligent homicide, arson and burglary.

Waraksa was arrested in July 2010 -- more than 23 years after the crime -- in connection with the deaths of Orie “Harold” Weeks, 59, and his wife, Assunta, 57, who were found dead after a fire at their home on Oct. 7, 1986.

Waraksa, a member of the Warehouse Point Volunteer Fire Department at the time of the fire, was charged with arson murder after an investigation by East Windsor police and the state cold case unit.

He was already in prison at the time of the arrest, serving a five-year sentence issued in 2007 for sexually assaulting five boys.

NBCConnecticut.com and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Courtesy of The Toledo Blade

A security video captures an image of a man -- believed to be Randy Linn, 52, of Indiana -- who lingered outside the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo as a fire burned inside. Linn was charged Wednesday.

Police have arrested a man they believe set fire to the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo on Sunday, the Toledo Blade reported.

Randy Linn, 52, of Saint Joe, Indiana, was charged Wednesday with two counts of arson and one count each of aggravated burglary and carrying a concealed weapon. The arson was the latest in a string of recent acts of violence, vandalism and threats against mosques since July, the beginning of Ramadan, a month of fasting for Muslims.

The arson is the latest in a string of threats and vandalism against U.S. mosques since last summer, including a mosque in Joplin, Mo. that burned down in early August – one month after it was the target of another apparent arson.

Related: Mosque in Missouri burns to the ground one month after arson attack 

 According to Thom Harmann, host of The Big Picture, the number of anti-Muslim hate groups tripled between 2010 and 2011. Since Aug. 5, nine mosques or places of worship have been vandalized or attacked across the U.S., according to the non-profit, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.

In Hayward, Calif., four people fired lemons, oranges, eggs and BB guns at a mosque. In Ontario, Calif., two women reportedly threw pig legs on the site of a proposed mosque, according to the ADC.

Allen County Sherriff Dept.

Randy Linn, 52, was charged Wednesday in the arson of an Islamic center in Ohio.

On Aug. 12 in Oklahoma City, vandals shot paintballs at the Grand Mosque while worshipers prayed, according to the Tulsa World.

Previously, in January, a man threw a firebomb into a mosque in Queens, N.Y., according to NBCNewYork.com. There were no injuries.

"We recommend a security guard during prayer hours,” Abed Ayoub, ADC’s legal director told NBC News. "Take measures and use common sense. Keep an eye on people who don’t seem to fit in. We ask them to install video cameras at the doors and throughout the mosque. Limit access to areas such as the kitchen, furnace or storage where someone could hide."

Related: Attacks on US mosques prompt Muslim security concerns

Back in Ohio, Linn was captured by a surveillance camera as he lingered outside the Islamic center at the time of the fire, according to the Blade. Most of the smoke and water damage took place on the second floor of the prayer room, officials told the Blade.

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bangordailynews.com

Police check a vehicle that was found burning off the around 3:35 a.m. After the fire was extinguished, they found three bodies inside the car which was parked off Target Industrial Circle in Bangor.

Police in Maine are investigating the deaths of three people who were found in a burned out car early Monday morning, NBC station WLBZ in Bangor reported. 

Sgt. Paul Edwards of the Bangor Police Department told the station the deaths are suspicious. He said the medical examiner will determine the cause of death in the coming days.  

Around 3:30 a.m., a local radio announcer called 911 after discovering the car fire while on her way to work.

"It was so fully engulfed when I saw it," Kat Walls said. "There was lots of popping and small booms. It was hard to tell it was a car at times because it was so engulfed.”

Firefighters noticed the bodies in the car after extinguishing the fire, according to the Bangor Daily News.

The heat from the fire was enough to burst the vehicle windows and pop the tires. The front bumper is undamaged but the rest of the car was destroyed.

Walls told the paper she learned about the bodies in the vehicle when a detective visited her during her morning show on 97.1 the Bear.

“It was horrifying — the idea that I sat there and waited for the fire department while people were burning inside. I’m struggling with it, actually. It feels horrible,” she said.

Edwards told the paper it's too early to say whether the people inside died as a result of the fire.  

“Basically, it’s evidence collection at this point," Edwards said.

The paper reported surveillance video from a nearby business is being reviewed by investigators. 

An employee from that business, Automatic Distributors, told the Bangor Daily News the video shows someone running away from the scene.

Video from a business across the street, Stratham Tire, is also being examined. 

“You just see the lights [from vehicles] going in, two or three sets, and then the blaze,” Stratham Tire manager Jeff Gordon told the paper.

Gordon told the Daily News that vehicles and license plates on video taken from across the street cannot be identified. 

The state's fire marshal's office has been called to assist the investigation.

Police have not released any information about the three people inside the vehicle. Edwards said it may take DNA matches to identify them.

"I have no identifications yet,” Edwards said. "It could take awhile."

For more, visit the Bangor Daily News

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FBI.gov

Man captured on surveillance video who is sought by law enforcers for an apparent arson attack on a mosque in Joplin, Mo., on July 4.

The FBI announced a $15,000 reward for information that helps nab a suspect captured on surveillance video throwing a lit object onto the roof of an Islamic Center in Joplin, Mo.

The nationwide appeal for tips that lead to the identity, whereabouts and indictment of the white man who appears on the video image came Wednesday, about two weeks after it was announced locally, said Bridget Patton, spokesperson for the FBI in Kansas City, Mo.

"We need to put that picture out to see if anyone can identify that person or give us any information to further this investigation," said Patton. She said the appeal could "just someone to stop and think… and call in pertinent information, like, 'you know, I did see a car on that street.'"

A fire on the roof of the Islamic Center of Joplin was reported about 3:30 a.m. July 4, the FBI said. It was extinguished by the Jasper County Fire Department before it could cause interior damage.

The mosque was vacant at the time, Patton said.

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She said she could not comment on whether the initial local appeal had generated any useful tips.

The $15,000 reward includes $10,000 from the FBI and $5,000 from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Federal law criminalizes arson and vandalism against houses of worship committed either because of the race or ethnicity of the group using the property or, in certain circumstances, because of the religious nature of the property, the FBI noted in a release.

The FBI plans to publish the whole video recording of the attack on its site on Friday, Patton said.

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Maricopa County Sheriff via AP file

Michael Marin

Investigators believe a defendant killed himself in a Phoenix courtroom shortly after a jury found him guilty of arson, saying their theory is backed up by evidence that includes a canister labeled "cyanide" found in his vehicle more than a week after his death.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Tuesday that the family of Michael Marin, 53, received a delayed email from Marin the night after his June 28 death in court. The email led investigators to the vehicle, where they found the canister. It was turned over to the medical examiner's office unopened.

Cari Gerchick, communications director for Maricopa County, said the medical examiner's office could not immediately confirm if the canister indeed contains cyanide. Gerchick said the medical examiner's office is still determining Marin's cause and manner of death.

The email also included information about his will in case things went poorly, Arpaio said.

After being convicted of deliberately burning down his $3.5 million Phoenix mansion, Marin collapsed in court and died.

At the time of his collapse, the judge was ordering that Marin be remanded into our custody, Capt. Brian Lee told Reuters.

"It's really sad," Arpaio said Tuesday, according to AZfamily.com.

"You have to feel bad for the family. I don't know why he did it," he added.

According to AZfamily.com, Arpaio said the poison was purchased for $68 from a California-based supplier in 2011 with Marin's personal credit card.

Video from inside the courtroom showed Marin putting his hands over his eyes after the guilty verdict was read and then covering his mouth with both hands.

Arizona man dies after arson conviction: police

AP Photo/Phoenix Fire Department

This July 2009 image provided by the Phoenix Fire Department shows the burned $3.5 million Phoenix mansion owned by Michael Marin.

Marin's mansion burned down in July 2009. "Marin couldn't pay his mortgage, so he burned down his house," the Arizona Republic newspaper quoted the prosecution as saying.

The newspaper reported that Marin barely escaped by climbing down a rope ladder from the second floor while wearing a scuba tank and diving mask to protect him from smoke inhalation.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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