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| | Arson for Profit Results in Murder
By Barry Zalma, CFE, Attorney At Law - December 2, 2014
Lawrence Myers, 64, a suburban Chicago, Illinois, landlord was found guilty November 17, 2014 in the deaths of seven people for a Valentine's Day 2010 apartment building fire that prosecutors said was set for insurance money. Myers was found guilty of seven counts of first-degree murder and of several counts of aggravated arson for hiring his building manager, Marion Andre Comier, 51, to set fire to the Cicero building to collect $250,000 in insurance money.
Killed in the fire were Byron Reed, 20; Sallie Gist, 18; their sons, 3-year-old Rayshawn Reed and 3-day-old Brian Reed; Gist's 16-year-old twin siblings, Elijah and Elisha Gist; and family friend Tiera Davidson, 18. Three Cicero firefighters were injured battling the blaze, which was set on a Sunday morning.
During Myers' two-day trial, the jury heard recordings of conversations between Myers and a friend who cooperated with investigators. On the tape, Myers talks about the scheme, saying he would have set the fire "in the afternoon, just before the kids got back from school."
Cook County jurors also heard from Bonita Robertson and her cousin, Brian Trent, who said Meyers asked Trent to torch the building.
Prosecutors said the fire was set on the back porch of the first floor of the two-story building, which had two two-bedroom apartments and two three-bedroom apartments. A first-floor rear apartment did not have any tenants. Fire investigators said the blaze spread quickly through the frame building, causing the roof to collapse and spreading to the second-floor attic where the victims were sleeping. Some who escaped the building awoke to the sound of screaming and banging coming from the attic.
The victims died from smoke inhalation, according to prosecutors. Meyers faces a mandatory life sentence for this conviction, according to prosecutors. Comier is awaiting trial.
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Barry Zalma is an insurance coverage attorney, consultant, and expert witness. As a California attorney, Mr. Zalma limits his practice to transactional, rather than litigation, counsel concerning insurance coverage matters, mainly representing insurers and those in the business of insurance. Mr. Zalma was licensed to practice law in 1972 and has operated his own firm since 1979. He is admitted to practice before all California courts, California U.S. District Courts and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. He has qualified as an expert in various state and federal courts across the U.S. and the British Cayman Islands.
Barry Zalma practices law as the Law Offices of Barry Zalma, Inc., 4441 Sepulveda Boulevard, Culver City CA 90230; phone 310-390-4455, fax: 310-391-5614, email: zalma@zalma.com. If you need an insurance claims handling, insurance coverage or insurance bad faith consultant and expert, contact Barry Zalma at Zalma Insurance Consultants using the aforementioned contact information.
Published by adjustercom with permission.
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