Incident
Around 4:15 a.m., on June 30, 1986, at the Old Farm Village Apartment complex in Columbus Grove, Ohio, a fire broke out in the second-floor apartment home of Hope Collins and her two-year-old daughter Cynthia Collins. As a result of the fire, Cynthia Collins died from asphyxia related to smoke inhalation. Hope Collins was not there at the time, as she had left to spend the night with a boyfriend after a party with neighbors from adjacent second-floor apartments at the complex. When the party was concluding, she invited Kenny Richey to sleep in her apartment in return for minding her sleeping daughter.
The Fire Chief initially blamed the fire on an electric fan, and the burnt remains of the interior of the apartment were removed. The Fire Chief then asked the Assistant State Fire Marshal Robert Cryer to investigate further. After investigating the scene, Cryer told the prosecutor's office that he believed that the fire was arson, a conclusion that eventually led to Kenny Richey being convicted and sentenced to death on charges of aggravated murder with a specification alleging murder in the course of arson, aggravated arson, breaking and entering (a greenhouse where he allegedly acquired the materials to start the fire), and child endangerment.
As result of her actions on that night, Hope Collins pled guilty to the amended charge of involuntary manslaughter, and served a total of 45 days in prison.
Read more about this topic: Kenny Richey
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