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NEWS BRIEFS
Smith pleads not guilty to arson charges
Deborah Smith sits with her attorney Matt Woelfel in Judge Dan O'Hannlon's court before her arraignment on Friday, Oct. 10, 2008, at the Cabell County Courthouse. Smith is charged with multiple counts of arson in the Jan. 31 fire that destroyed the Keaton home in Barboursville.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- Deborah L. Smith pleaded not guilty today to starting a fire that caused more than $1 million in damages to her ex-husband’s home.
Smith, who appeared in a dark blue, two-piece business suit, sat with about 10 family members and friends in the courtroom until her attorney, Matt Woelfel, came and told her she was first to appear before Circuit Court Judge Dan O’Hanlon.
O’Hanlon informed prosecutor Chris Chiles and Woelfel that he knows Smith and Rick Keaton from social outings. He asked if either wanted to request another judge to hear the case, and both waived that right.
Smith is charged with two counts of first-degree arson, along with single counts of third-degree arson, burning insured property, insurance fraud and domestic battery, all stemming from the Jan. 31 fire at Keaton’s home in a gated community near the Huntington Mall. The Cabell County Sheriff’s Office said Keaton’s house was fully engulfed in flames when its deputy arrived. The deputy found Smith sitting on a neighbor's front step.
The first-degree arson counts charge that Smith willfully set fire to Keaton’s house and a garage. The third-degree count charges she set fire to a 2005 Chevrolet Corvette, 1955 Ford Thunderbird, a 1998 Harley Davidson motorcycle, a 1966 Ford Mustang and other miscellaneous items.
The burning insured property count is linked to setting the house ablaze, while the insurance fraud count is a charge that Smith provided false statements April 1 to claim benefits.
The domestic battery count charges that Smith battered her ex-husband by beating him with a table lamp and biting him on the arm.
Bond was agreed upon at $50,000, and Chiles did not object to Woelfel’s request that Smith be allowed to travel to her property in Florida. O’Hanlon granted the request and reminded Smith that she is to have no contact with Keaton.
After posting bond, Smith left the Cabell County Courthouse with her family members at her side. She declined to answer any questions following the arraignment.
Her trial is scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. Monday, Dec. 15.
