Arson

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"Arsonists" redirects here. For other uses, see Arsonists (disambiguation).
This article is about the crime. For other uses, see Arson (disambiguation).

Criminal law

Elements

 Actus reus
 Mens rea
 Causation
 Concurrence

Scope of criminal liability

 Complicity
 Corporate
 Vicarious

Severity of offense

 Felony
 Infraction (also called violation)
 Misdemeanor

Inchoate offenses

 Attempt
 Conspiracy
 Incitement
 Solicitation

Offence against the person

 Assassination
 Assault
 Battery
 Child abuse
 Criminal negligence
 Defamation
 False imprisonment
 Harassment
 Home invasion
 Homicide
 Intimidation
 Kidnapping
 Malicious castration
 Manslaughter (corporate)
 Mayhem
 Murder
o corporate
 Negligent homicide
 Invasion of privacy
 Robbery
 Torture

Sexual offences

 Adultery
 Bigamy
 Fornication
 Incest
 Indecent exposure
 Masturbation
 Obscenity
 Prostitution
 Rape
 Sexual assault
 Sodomy

Crimes against property

 Arson
 Blackmail
 Bribery
 Burglary
 Embezzlement
 Extortion
 False pretenses
 Forgery
 Fraud
 Gambling
 Intellectual property violation
 Larceny
 Payola
 Pickpocketing
 Possessing stolen property
 Robbery
 Smuggling
 Tax evasion
 Theft

Crimes against justice

 Compounding
 Malfeasance in office
 Miscarriage of justice
 Misprision
 Obstruction
 Perjury
 Perverting the course of justice

Crimes against the public

 Apostasy
 Begging
 Censorship violation
 Dueling
 Miscegenation
 Illegal consumption (such as prohibition of drugs, alcohol,
and smoking)
 Terrorism

Crimes against animals

 Cruelty to animals
 Wildlife smuggling
 Bestiality

Crimes against the state

 Lèse-majesté
 Treason
Defences to liability

 Automatism
 Consent
 Defence of property
 Diminished responsibility
 Duress
 Entrapment
 Ignorantia juris non excusat
 Infancy
 Insanity
 Justification
 Mistake (of law)
 Necessity
 Provocation
 Self-defence

Other common-law areas

 Contracts
 Evidence
 Property
 Torts
 Wills, trusts and estates

Portals

 Law

 v
 t
 e

Terrorism

 Definitions
 History
 Incidents

By ideology[show]

Structure[show]
 Methods

 Tactics

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Terrorist groups[show]

Adherents[show]

Response to terrorism[show]

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A U.S. World War II era arson poster

The Skyline Parkway Motel at Rockfish Gap after arson on July 9, 2004
Arson[1] is the crime of willfully and maliciously setting fire to or charring property.[2] Though the act
typically involves buildings, the term arson can also refer to the intentional burning of other things,
such as motor vehicles, watercraft, or forests.[2] The crime is typically classified as a felony, with
instances involving a greater degree of risk to human life or property carrying a stricter penalty.[2] A
common motive for arson is to commit insurance fraud.[2][3] In such cases, a person destroys their
own property by burning it and then lies about the cause in order to collect against their insurance
policy.[4]
A person who commits arson is called an 'arsonist'. Arsonists normally use an accelerant (such
as gasoline or kerosene) to ignite, propel and directionalize fires, and the detection and identification
of ignitable liquid residues (ILRs) is an important part of fire investigations.[5] Pyromania is an impulse
control disorder characterized by the pathological setting of fires.[6] Most acts of arson are not
committed by pyromaniacs.[6]

Cars damaged by arson in Hackney, Greater London, during the 2011 England Riots

Contents

 1Etymology
 2English common law
 3Degrees
 4United States
 5England, Wales, and Hong Kong
 6Scotland
 7See also
 8References
 9Further reading
 10External links

Etymology[edit]
The term derives from Law French arsoun (late 13th century), from Old French arsion, from Late
Latin arsionem "a burning," from the verb ardere, "to burn."[7][8][9]

English common law[edit]

Historically, the common law crime of arson had four elements:

1. The malicious
2. burning
3. of the dwelling
4. of another[10]
Malicious
For purposes of common law arson, "malicious" refers to action creating a great risk of a
burning. It is not required that the defendant acted intentionally or willfully for the purpose of
burning a dwelling.[original research?]
Burning
At common law charring to any part of dwelling was sufficient to satisfy this element. No
significant amount of damage to the dwelling was required. Any injury or damage to the
structure caused by exposure to heat or flame is sufficient.
Of the dwelling
'Dwelling' refers to a place of residence. The destruction of an unoccupied building was not
considered arson: "... since arson protected habitation, the burning of an unoccupied house
did not constitute arson." At common law a structure did not become a residence until the
first occupants had moved in, and ceased to be a dwelling if the occupants abandoned the
premises with no intention of resuming their residency.[11] Dwelling includes structures and
outbuildings within the curtilage.[12] Dwellings were not limited to houses. A barn could be the
subject of arson occupied as a dwelling.
Of another
Burning one's own dwelling does not constitute common law arson, even if the purpose was
to collect insurance, because "it was generally assumed in early England that one had the
legal right to destroy his own property in any manner he chose".[13] Moreover, for purposes of
common law arson, possession or occupancy rather than title determines whose dwelling the
structure is.[12] Thus a tenant who sets fire to his rented house would not be guilty of common
law arson,[12] while the landlord who set fire to a rented dwelling house would be guilty.

Degrees[edit]
Many U.S. state legal systems and the legal systems of several other countries
divide arson into degrees, depending sometimes on the value of the property but
more commonly on its use and whether the crime was committed in the day or
night.

 First-degree arson – Burning an occupied structure such as a school or a

place where people are normally present
 Second-degree arson – Burning an unoccupied building such as an empty
barn or an unoccupied house or other structure in order to claim insurance on
such property
 Third-degree arson – Burning an abandoned building or an abandoned area,
such as a field, forest or woods.
Many statutes vary the degree of the crime according to the criminal intent of the
accused. Some US states use other degrees of arson, such as "fourth" and "fifth"
degree,[14] while some states do not categorize arson by any degree. For example,
in the state of Tennessee, arson is categorized as "arson" and "aggravated arson".

United States