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Findings of
Bingham Child Guidance Center
from evalating the Juvenile Fire Setter
In Louisville
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Over the last five years, 56% of all fire-related arrests were juveniles.
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Though the number of juveniles arrested each year for arson is typically higher than adults,fires set by adults are more dangerous and cause more monetary damage.*
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Kids who don’t receive treatment could become adults who set more detrimental fires.
*According to the Louisville Division of Fire Arson Bureau statistics.
Statistics from the first six years of the Bingham Child Guidance Center Juvenile Fire Setters Program show:
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on average, there were 65 patients seen per year
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45% of the fires were life threatening
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33% caused major property damage
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47% caused minor property damage
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The most recent statistics indicate:
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in 2002, there were 31 patients seen
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slightly greater than 3% of the fires were life threatening
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43% caused major property damage
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43% caused minor property damage
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Though the percentage of major and minor property damage did not significantly improve or deteriorate, the number of life threatening fires has diminished tremendously, from 45% to under 4%. This decrease in both number of patients seen per year, as well as the decrease in life-threatening situations are a sign that the city’s coalition with the Bingham Child Guidance Center is yielding considerable positive results.
2002 Statistics- Bingham Child Guidance Center
According to statistics found throughout the nation, the trends clearly indicate the demographics most often associated with juvenile fire setting. These trends are not necessarily indicative of psychological concerns, but show a striking recurrence in gender and age group in particular, etching a profile of youths at-risk for this anti-social behavior. The Bingham Child Guidance Center finds the same trends in its patient population, as well.
In most cases, boys are responsible for setting fires.
Adolescents between 9 and 13 years old are more likely to engage in fire setting behavior.
The majority of fires are set inside. Often, the structures set ablaze are old, abandoned buildings. On the other hand, sometimes the fires are set in their own homes or in school restroom waste baskets. Most often, more than one adolescent is involved in the incident.
City stats 1997-2002
City stats show that for all fires set by juveniles,
1.56 kids were involved in the incident.
Other significant findings indicate that single parent family settings are common among the patients treated in our Juvenile Fire Setters Program.
Profiles of Bingham’s Six Recidivists In the First Seven Years
1. A three-year-old male with a family psychiatric history was evaluated after he threw a blanket on a stove. Two months earlier, he had set a plastic bowl on fire and was admitted to the hospital. Two years later, at the age of 5, he set a rug on fire. He was hospitalized again.
2. A twelve-year-old male with a family psychiatric history set several fires, burning his face when he used gasoline as fuel. He was evaluated and long-term residential placement was recommended, but his guardian chose outpatient therapy. At the age of 13, he set a life-threatening leaf fire and was hospitalized.
3. A five-year-old male set his grandmother’s bed on fire and a kitchen fire at his 21-year-old mother’s house. After threatening an eight-year-old with a knife, he was evaluated and hospitalized. Two years later, his mother brought him back for a second evaluation after he used the stove to set fire to a piece of paper which he threw behind a heater and stomped out. He had been in outpatient therapy for five months. His father, absent for seven years, had recently reneged on a promise to see him. Because his young mother appeared intimidated by her son’s fire setting and needed child-rearing counseling, both the child and mother were referred for outpatient therapy. Less than five months later, the child was brought back for a third evaluation, this time after his mother had sent him to light a cigarette for her from the flame on the stove and he instead lit a paper napkin. The child explained that he didn’t like cigarettes and wanted to return to the hospital. The evaluater noted that, if the mother continued to ask him to light her cigarettes, he would continue to start fires. He was hospitalized again.
4. A seven year old male and his eleven-year-old friend lit a candle while playing in his grandmother’s basement. After “stomping” it out, the boys went outside to play until the smoke poured out of the basement, resulting in $81,000 worth of destruction. The child’s mother had moved out of the grandmother’s home when the child was an infant. Because the fire setting incident was seen as the result of poor judgement and not angry intent to hurt people, the child was referred for outpatient therapy. Seven months later, there was a second fire which caused $47,000 worth of damage and made the home uninhabitable. Although the child would not admit setting the second fire, he was again referred for outpatient treatment.
5. An eleven-year-old boy was referred by a court after he set off a false alarm “because I wanted to have fun”. A few months earlier, the boy threatened to set fire to a classmate’s house, he threw knives at his sister, and was hospitalized. His father had more than one incarceration over the past nine years for drug charges and third-degree burglary. The child was referred for outpatient treatment. Two years later, a court referred him for evaluation after he and two friends poured gasoline in an alleyway and set it ablaze. He was angry with his father for purposefully violating parole so he could go to jail instead of continuing house arrest. The child was referred for continued outpatient treatment. Two months later, he returned under court order after he ignited an aerosol can to produce a flame-throw effect. This time he was hospitalized.
6. A twelve-year-old boy was court-ordered for evaluation after he set a fire inside a garage. He had started a series of fires, mostly using gasoline, beginning at age eight. His parents’ use of alcohol led to repeated conflicts. He was hospitalized twice. A year later, he was again court-ordered for evaluation after he set fire to a house under construction, causing an estimated $2,000 damage. About five minutes after he arrived for evaluation, he fled, was apprehended by the police, and returned. He was again hospitalized.
How Do Our Recidivists Compare
with the Rest of our Fire Setters?
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“Average” Fire Setter
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Recidivist
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Referred by
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Other than Arson Squad Investigation, Court
Arson Squad and Court,
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Court
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Age
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6 years old
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12 years old
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Sex
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88% male
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100% male
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Single-Parent Family
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64%
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75%
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Guardian
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Mother
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Mother
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Family Psychiatric History
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60%
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100%
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Life-Threatening Fire*
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44%
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75%
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Major Property Destruction*
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31%
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25%
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Minor Property Destruction*
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47%
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25%
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Inpatient
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45%
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63%
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Outpatient
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46%
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37%
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* A fire may fit into more than one category, i.e., both life-threatening and
major/minor property destruction.
Major Characteristics of a Recidivist:
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older
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exclusively male, in our study
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sets more life-threatening fires
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has family psychiatric history
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chaotic home life
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unreported or frequently reported previous fire setting history
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either no previous contact with mental health providers or failure to continuewith mental health provider or failure to secure recommended treatment bya state or local agency
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