Overview
- James Edwin Barnett, 57, is charged with second-degree arson, three counts of second-degree depraved-heart murder, involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment in the Stricker Street blaze.
- Charging documents say surveillance footage showed Barnett inside the vacant rowhome for about eight minutes with flashes consistent with a butane lighter at the fire’s point of origin.
- Investigators used MATLAB Image Processing Toolbox for light-source analysis, and the ATF reports conducting more than 1,000 scientific tests in the broader probe.
- Families of the fallen and injured firefighters praised the arrest yet accuse city leaders of ignoring safety concerns, with ongoing lawsuits alleging the city halted or obscured the Code X‑Ray vacant-building warnings.
- Barnett remains jailed without bond following Monday’s ruling, and a preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 11 unless a grand jury indicts him earlier.