Published: April 14, 2008 11:55 pm      

Teen lauded as hero now charged with starting fire

When fire ripped through a Johnstown apartment building last week, 14-year-old Dalton Felton was hailed as a hero for helping to evacuate residents.

Now he is charged with setting that blaze.

City police Chief Craig Foust said investigators do not believe the boy intended to burn the three-story structure along Coleman Avenue in the Moxham neighborhood.

“However, his reckless conduct resulted in the building catching on fire and being destroyed,” Foust said.

Because the suspect is a juvenile, police did not release his name. But The Tribune-Democrat confirmed that Felton is accused of causing the fire.

Foust said the boy allegedly was playing with gasoline Wednesday in the basement of the building where he lived.

“We believe he was lighting a glove,” Foust said.

Eight people were inside the structure when the fire began; all escaped safely.

Despite a massive response by city firefighters, the building was consumed by flames and eventually collapsed.

Investigators initially were concerned that they would not be able to pinpoint a cause because of extensive damage at the scene.

“All arsons are very challenging criminal investigations for that reason – a lot of evidence is destroyed in the fire,” Foust said.

But officials were able to determine that the blaze wasn’t caused by an electrical malfunction or a heating unit, Foust said.

Interviews led police to the boy, who allegedly has a history of playing with fire.

The teen is charged with arson, causing a catastrophe and reckless endangerment.

He faces a hearing Wednesday to determine whether he should be held in the county’s juvenile detention center until his case is resolved.

State Sen. John Wozniak, who owns the building, has faced tough questions about the structure’s condition since the fire.

On Monday, Wozniak said those rumors “hurt deeply.” The building had passed all inspections and was up to code, he said.

Wozniak added that he hoped the suspect “gets the help that he needs” in the court system.

“I’m just thankful nobody got hurt or killed,” he said.

Those who ran from the burning building are trying to rebuild their lives.

Stephen Kearse and Nicole Settlemyer, a couple who had lived in the building since December with their son, Javon, returned Monday to survey a pile of charred wood, twisted metal and broken brick.

“This is where my apartment was, right here,” Settlemyer said, pointing out clothes and baby toys in the debris.

The family is staying with friends and looking for a new place to live.

“You’ve just got to take it day by day,” Kearse said.