Harry James Collins is named in connection with arson charges in Connellsville.
The city man was charged with arson and risking catastrophe.
Details of the Case
A resident of an upstairs apartment separately told police he heard Scheller yelling and several loud bangs, lending another account to the chaotic scene investigators pieced together afterward.
What the Charges Could Mean
Under Pennsylvania law, risking catastrophe is a third-degree felony that applies when someone recklessly creates a risk of catastrophe through fire, explosives or other dangerous means, according to Pennsylvania General Assembly, 18 Pa.C.S. § 3302. The terroristic threats statute covers communicating a threat to commit violence with intent to terrorize someone; it separately covers communicating a threat to cause an evacuation, without specifying an intent requirement for that clause. The statute also covers threats made with reckless disregard for the risk of causing terror or serious public inconvenience, per Pennsylvania General Assembly, 18 Pa.C.S. § 2706.
That same statute notes the charge is generally graded as a first-degree misdemeanor, but it can escalate to a third-degree felony if the threat causes occupants to be diverted from their normal routines — and a conviction can require restitution for evacuation-related costs such as fire and police response, emergency services and transportation.
Not the First Connellsville Arson Case This Year
The case echoes another recent arson prosecution out of Connellsville. In September, the Herald-Standard reported that 35-year-old Allie Ritenour was charged with aggravated arson involving a person inside the property, arson endangering property, criminal mischief and recklessly endangering another person in connection with a May 3 house fire. In that case, a neighbor told police the house was engulfed in flames five to seven minutes after Ritenour ran back inside, and three other people were reported to have been inside the residence at the time, according to the Herald-Standard. Ritenour's preliminary hearing was scheduled for Sept. 23 before District Judge Ronald Haggerty.
