An 8-year-old charged with arson in Washington County could be tried in juvenile court or be directed toward services that would provide him with help, according to the Code of Virginia.
The boy — a foster child who had been living for just three days with his new family in their historic home on Faris Drive in Glade Spring — was charged after the three-story structure was destroyed by fire on Dec. 27.
Investigators said it appeared the fire started in a living room closet and that a grill lighter was used to set blankets on fire.
The child may be the youngest charged in Washington County, according to Sheriff Fred Newman.
"I can't recall in my tenure as sheriff that we've charged anyone any younger," Newman said. "I also can't say that we've had anyone at his age that's has done anything to the magnitude that he's charged with."
Randy Blevins, probation director for the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice in Washington County, said he could not address the specifics of any case but did explain how the system works when a child is accused of wrongdoing. First, he said, parties with a complaint come to the office in Washington County and provide information "of the nature of the situation." That information has to meet certain criteria for a petition, like the one filed against the boy, to be issued.
"We swear the people to the correctness of the information as they know it," Blevins said, and the paperwork is filed in the clerk's office.
That information is then made available to concerned parties — such as the child's parents, the child if he or she is over the age of 14 or other caretakers. In certain situations, the child's school can also be notified, as per state code.
"If there's no need to have the juvenile placed in a detention center, the paperwork is filed, processed … (and) distributed to parties by the Sheriff's Office," he said. "It's based on information given to us."
Blevins said his office serves in a role similar to that of a magistrate — that is, it takes information and authorizes petitions, similar to warrants.
But, he said, the juvenile justice system is not a one-size-fits-all system.
"Every case is evaluated individually on its own merits," he said. "There's an option … to do a diversion — usually first-time offenders with minor offenses … where other services (are provided) to those youths and families to deter them from coming into the juvenile justice system."
Lana Coalson, a foster mom who works with Commonwealth Catholic Charities, said she's not permitted to speak about the boy who lived in her family's home for three days. He was removed from the home after the fire, but no information about his current whereabouts has been released.
"I'm not allowed to say anything," she said. "Not even to acknowledge he was in our home, because of a confidentiality statement I signed years ago."
What she can say, she said, was that the family, which is made up of seven children adopted by her and her husband, Dan, is praying for the child and is trying to move forward.
"Everything is going to fall into place," she said.
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