topic Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire in Community Chat

Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

hoosieroriginal — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 20:55:52 GMT

I certainly hope they get charged as adults, not minors - killing 14 people and millions of dollars in damage - where on earth are these kids' parents?

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

cherry — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 20:57:15 GMT

What were they thinking to do such an evil act?

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

NickNack — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 20:57:24 GMT

I just heard that. I hope they get charged as adults, too. I live in East TN and could smell the fires from my home. I'm about an hour away from Gatlinburg. These fires have just been devastating.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

Puppy Lips — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 20:58:16 GMT

@hoosieroriginal wrote:
I certainly hope they get charged as adults, not minors - killing 14 people and millions of dollars in damage - where on earth are these kids' parents?

Even the best parents can have kids that do dumb things. I would not be so quick to blame the parents. That being said, this is a very sad situation for everyone, the kids included.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

Puzzle Piece — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:01:56 GMT

Where were the parents? I would think they get charge with not keeping an eye on their children/minors. Get em all involved with charges and maybe it would set an example for many other to keep a tighter watch on their offspring.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

2blonde — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:04:39 GMT

I wonder how they caught them. Even a teenager should know better than to start a fire. Kids just have too much time on their hands.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

hoosieroriginal — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:13:57 GMT

@2blonde wrote:
I wonder how they caught them. Even a teenager should know better than to start a fire. Kids just have too much time on their hands.

@2blonde - kids like this brag about their feats - hopefully someone they bragged to turned them in. And I agree - they have too much tiime on their hands. Heaven forbid they do something good with their time.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

cherry — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:16:35 GMT

How old were they?

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

hoosieroriginal — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:19:05 GMT

@cherry wrote:
How old were they?

@cherry - I said teens, but they actually said juveniles - not sure - they're not saying much since they are juveniles. Just a shame so many people lost their lives and so many people lost their homes from kids making foolish decisions.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

chickenbutt — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:25:14 GMT

I wonder if it was with purpose or by carelessness. Either way, same end result.

If it was purposeful I would want a harsher punishment, but carelessness is something that I cannot stand so that would still be punishable, in my world anyway.

If it was some kind of freak accident, that's another thing entirely.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

January121 — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:25:28 GMT

The story is still unfolding but, I blame the parents for not raising respectable kids ..they obviously we're not taught right from wrong .... the teens should be punished as adults for what they did!!!!

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

software — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:28:15 GMT

They were playing with fire during a devastating drought.

For many weeks it had been drilled into everyone to not start a fire for any purpose. No fire pits, no outdoor cooking, period.

@chickenbutt wrote:
I wonder if it was with purpose or by carelessness. Either way, same end result.

If it was purposeful I would want a harsher punishment, but carelessness is something that I cannot stand so that would still be punishable, in my world anyway.

If it was some kind of freak accident, that's another thing entirely.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

hoosieroriginal — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:31:31 GMT

@chickenbutt wrote:
I wonder if it was with purpose or by carelessness. Either way, same end result.

If it was purposeful I would want a harsher punishment, but carelessness is something that I cannot stand so that would still be punishable, in my world anyway.

If it was some kind of freak accident, that's another thing entirely.

@chickenbutt - if it was accidental, they should have run and told someone before it got so out of control - that's no excuse.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

chickenbutt — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:38:10 GMT

hoosieroriginal wrote:
chickenbutt wrote:
I wonder if it was with purpose or by carelessness. Either way, same end result.

If it was purposeful I would want a harsher punishment, but carelessness is something that I cannot stand so that would still be punishable, in my world anyway.

If it was some kind of freak accident, that's another thing entirely.
@chickenbutt - if it was accidental, they should have run and told someone before it got so out of control - that's no excuse.

Thanks! Oh wow, what a tragic shame that they were probably scared to say anything and just ran.

I don't know how old they are. If they are little kids, I suppose I can kind of understand how they felt. I probably did some things, as a little kid, that I was afraid to tell about - BUT, never anything that cause the loss of lives and/or property.

If they are teenagers, or somewhere in the 12 and up range, they should definitely have known better and known that horrible things could happen, so they were responsible to get help.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

NickNack — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 21:47:08 GMT

I have a feeling it wasn't accidental. They aren't saying how old the juveniles are or their sex either.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

SahmIam — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 22:00:22 GMT

I'll get flamed for this: teens are not the best at thinking of "what will happen down the road" especially when males. They live for the here and now and simply don't get it regarding SO many things. This is why we don't allow individuals under 18 to be held legally accountable for anything....they simply don't have the maturity or the life experiences under their belt.

Should they have known better? Yes but so should have all the adults who have set fires (either by accident or on purpose) that maybe, in a very dry area with no rain, it isn't a smart idea. If they're 12, 13, 14 years of age, how, exactly, do you hold them accountable? Put them in jail with hardened criminals (have you been to a JV facility?!) They don't carry insurance so you can't make them pay money to repair or replace what has been lost. You could go after the parents, I suppose, but what if the parents lost everything in the fire OR was killed?

If these are kids who have been in trouble repeatedly with the law, then what DO you do because obviously they know what the system holds for them. Of course we all think "the little (&*&%^" but what do you do then? I mean... really? What do you do?

This type of a situation is one where you really need to have ALL the FACTS before playing judge and jury. I hope it was an accident. I hope a bunch of kids were hanging out roasting marshmallows and thought they'd cover up their fire correctly and never meant for this to happen. I honestly don't know what I would do if one of my boys did something like this....I would hope he wouldn't but what would I do if he got caught up in it?

It makes me sick thinking about it all. : (

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

BlingQueen022 — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 22:03:33 GMT

If they set the fire on purpose, I would give them 40 years in jail without parole. 14 people were killed, homes lost, wildlife killed, and businesses set on fire. Enough said.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

ECBG — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 22:45:06 GMT

I just saw this on a friend's FB.

The law really needs to be written to cover these massive fires that devastate our forests and the other things that happen as a result.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

chickenbutt — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 23:27:01 GMT

I just saw that the charge is 'aggravated arson'. I don't know much about the levels of arson, but that sounds like it's being taken very seriously.

Re: Two teens charged with starting Tennessee fire

MarieIG — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 00:04:41 GMT

I didn't see any information yet as to how they started the fire. Found this (can't vouch for accuracy). Arson. In Tennessee, a person commits arson if he or she “knowingly damages any structure by means of a fire or explosion: (1) Without the consent of all persons who have a possessory, proprietary or security interest therein; or (2) With intent to destroy or damage any structure to collect insurance for the damage or destruction or for any unlawful purpose.” T.C.A. § 39-14-301. Aggravated arson consists of the conduct defined above when “one or more persons are present therein; or when any person, including firefighters and law enforcement officials, suffers serious bodily injury as a result of the fire or explosion.” T.C.A. § 39-14-302. Tennessee law also criminalizes “reckless burning,” T.C.A. § 39-14-304, leaving fires near woodlands unattended, T.C.A. § 39-14-305, and setting fires at certain times without a permit. T.C.A. § 39-14-306.