Posted 11:42 pm Saturday, December 04, 2010
Church Arsons Suspects Appear In Court
By DAYNA WORCHEL
Staff Writer
Staff Writer
The two Smith County men who were accused in a string of East Texas church fires early this year made an appearance in the 114th District Court on Thursday for a brief pre-trial hearing.
A tentative Jan. 10 trial date for Jason Robert Bourque, 20, and Daniel George McAllister, 22 has been set since August, Smith County District Attorney Matt Bingham said.
During the pre-trial hearing, Judge Christi Kennedy spoke with defense attorneys Brent Ratekin, who is representing McAllister, and Greg Waldron, who represents Bourque, along with the Smith County District Attorney's Office to get an update on how preparations for the trial were proceeding.
"It was a normal docket call and it took about 13 seconds -- nothing has changed since the scheduling order was set on Aug. 31," Bingham said.
Bourque was indicted on five counts of arson and three counts of attempted arson, and McAllister was indicted on two counts of arson and two counts of attempted arson. They were arrested in February after an extensive investigation, which covered three counties and involved local, state and federal law enforcement.
Both men are being held in the Smith County Jail on bonds of $10 million each. They were arrested and charged for the Dover Baptist Church fire, which happened in Tyler on Feb. 8.
The indictments show multiple counts of arson or attempted arson, which include other church fires besides Dover Baptist in Smith County. The charge is a first-degree felony, which carries a punishment range of anywhere from five to 99 years to life for each count. A fine of as much as $10,000 also may be assessed.
