Woman pleads guilty to arson charge
Admits lighting fire in Willits in August
A Mendocino County woman recently admitted setting a fire earlier this year in Willits, District Attorney David Eyster reported.
According to a press release posted on Facebook, Jennifer Leeann Smith, 39, last of Fort Bragg, pleaded guilty Wednesday to arson of forest land, a felony, and also reportedly “stipulated to a 48-month sentence in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.”
According to the DA’s office, on Aug. 19, 2021, “the Willits Police Department, Little Lake Fire Department and the Brooktrails
Fire Department all responded to a fire burning behind the Burger King restaurant and very close to the Baechtel Creek Medical Clinic in south Willits,” which investigators soon determined was “likely intentionally set by an arsonist.”
With “dynamite surveillance footage” available, investigators established that “Smith walked up out of the creek bed near the drive-thru, bent over and lit dry grass afire, and then hurriedly walked away.”
When contacted by law enforcement near the fire, Smith reportedly denied setting the fire intentionally, claiming that “her cigarette lighter did not work, and she had started a small fire by accident while trying to light a new cigarette with the burning remains of an earlier cigarette that she was smoking. She insisted that she stomped out the small fire she had started and was not responsible for any other fire.”
However, law enforcement report that a search of Smith revealed she had a working cigarette lighter on her person, which they believed she used to start the fire.
“The surveillance footage likewise showed, contrary to her statement, that the defendant made no effort to stomp out the fire after she had set the dry grass
Emily is going into her senior year of high school.
John Paul Mcmillan has been a staple of MVFD for years and is recently recovering Assistant Chief, Mcmillan is beloved by the department, and is known as someone who can break any door down, Mcmillan has been part of all the department’s rescue teams but perhaps is most notable for his water rescue strengths. Mcmillan is a master operator who has been part of some dangerous rescues and there are those who owe their lives to him. Just like Dooley and Lindstrom, Mcmillan’s children have grown up in the time that he has been in the department. Rowan, Michele, and Allison should be proud of their dad and all of the people he’s helped over the years. This past year Mcmillan was promoted to the position of Grandpa.
While celebrating their 20-year volunteers, MVFD also welcomes four new probational members to their team. Their new members come from an array of backgrounds. Nina Larsen and Vivian Daniel are longtime nurses who are lending MVFD their expertise as dedicated Medical Responders. Their wealth of medical knowledge will be instrumental as MVFD continues to respond to more and more medical calls every year. Known for his heroic water rescues over the past several years as a State Parks Lifeguard, Ean Miller has joined the rank and file and is definitely going to make a splash. Our final probationary member is Seneca Sluis who is beloved by the community for her selfless dedication as a teacher for the Mendocino Unified School District. Seneca has shown a tenacity for developing new skills, responding to as many calls as possible, and looking for any opportunity to help. With these new recruits, the future is bright for MVFD