Warning: This story refers to family violence and may be upsetting to some readers
A man who burned down his former partner’s house as she was upstairs preparing for bed was “motivated by a strong desire to punish her”.
It could well have been fatal, Crown prosecutor Sophie O’Donoghue said at today’s sentencing of arsonist David Michael Sparks.
The woman was forced to leap from the third floor of the rental home near central Nelson when the blaze quickly took hold after Sparks poured fuel on furniture and lit it.
The trauma had triggered a recurring dream in which she was burned alive, she said in her victim impact statement.
A flatmate who moved in the day before was seriously injured when his clothes caught fire as he tried to get out of the inferno.
“Burning down the house of a former partner and mother of one’s child is right up there on the spectrum of family violence,” O’Donoghue said.
Sparks was sentenced in the Nelson District Court to five years and three months in prison for arson, burglary, wounding with reckless disregard and breaching a protection order, from the events of a night in May last year.
Judge Jo Rielly said while Sparks’ remorse towards the injured flatmate appeared genuine, his letter to her as the sentencing judge and to his former partner was “filled with excuses”.
Judge Rielly said Sparks appeared to blame his former partner for the predicament in which he had found himself.
Sparks addressed the court directly to apologise in person.
“It will take some time to forgive myself.
“I can’t stress enough how sorry I am,” he said.
Arrived with a full can of fuel
On May 21 last year, Sparks went to the address at night carrying a jerry can of petrol he had bought from a nearby fuel station.
At the time, he was the subject of a final protection order against the woman who lived there.
He went in through a ranchslider door, poured petrol on the sofa and a mat, set it alight then left.
When the flatmate noticed smoke seeping in through the doorway, he opened the door.
The sight of flames made him panic. He ran downstairs and through the fire to escape, the summary of facts said.
His clothes caught fire and despite his efforts to put out the flames, they kept reigniting.
He then jumped about 4m off a retaining wall and was helped by the woman who had leapt from the upstairs window when she saw black smoke inside the house, and was unable to get out.
She injured her ankle when she hit the ground, but found her flatmate on the driveway, still on fire, and used a garden hose to douse the flames.
He suffered smoke inhalation and burns to 20% of his body, and required treatment in Nelson Hospital’s intensive care unit before he was flown to Hutt Valley Hospital burns unit.
As well as significant pain, permanent scars and ongoing trauma, he had lost all his personal belongings in the fire, the summary said.
“He will suffer from his injuries, for life,” Judge Rielly said.
‘Quick, get out!’
A neighbour described the scene, and threat to their own home, as “terrible”.
They had just got home from an outing in town when a few minutes later they heard a big noise, looked outside and saw the house fully alight.
“I just yelled, ‘quick, get out, the house next door is on fire’. It went up so fast.”
They called emergency services while seeking refuge on the street below.
“I was really worried – I was that hysterical person dialling 111 and trying to say what was happening,” the neighbour told NZME.
The property owner had suffered a significant financial loss as the house had been destroyed, as well as significant stress trying to sort out the insurance.
O’Donoghue said Sparks’ “belated remorse” was inconsistent with his earlier denials, when there was “overwhelming evidence” of his actions on CCTV and in phone data.
Defence lawyer Emma Riddell said Sparks accepted he “had work to do” and it was encouraging he was prepared to tackle recommended rehabilitation programmes.
She said it was difficult to reconcile his behaviour as he had no history of intimate partner violence.
Judge Rielly noted it appeared to have been triggered by a breakdown in the relationship with the mother of his child and Sparks became upset at a perceived wrong.
She said the offending was premeditated and motivated by revenge.
From an adjusted starting point of seven-and-a-half years in prison, Sparks was given credits for his eventual guilty pleas, personal circumstances and the impact on his child of his imprisonment.
He was also ordered to pay $5000 he had offered in reparation, to be divided among the victims.
FAMILY VIOLENCE
How to get help:
If you're in danger now:
• Phone the police on 111 or ask neighbours or friends to ring for you.
• Run outside and head for where there are other people. Scream for help so your neighbours can hear you.
• Take the children with you. Don't stop to get anything else.
• If you are being abused, remember it's not your fault. Violence is never okay.
Where to go for help or more information:
• Women's Refuge: Crisis line - 0800 REFUGE or 0800 733 843 (available 24/7)
• Shine: Helpline - 0508 744 633 (available 24/7)
• It's Not Ok: Family violence information line - 0800 456 450
• Shakti: Specialist services for African, Asian and Middle Eastern women and children.
• Crisis line - 0800 742 584 (available 24/7)
• Ministry of Justice: For information on family violence
• Te Kupenga Whakaoti Mahi Patunga: National Network of Family Violence Services
• White Ribbon: Aiming to eliminate men's violence towards women.
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