Curtis Westover, 70, pleads guilty to lesser charge of arson and could avoid jail, hefty fine
By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
Township resident Curtis Westover pleaded guilty Tuesday to a downgraded arson charge in the fire of a dilapidated, but debatably historic, 200-year-old home on Amwell Road house in March 2011.
Mr. Westover, 70, of Zion Road, agreed to plead guilty in exchange for probation with no jail time or fine of consequence.
The indictment was amended to a lesser degree of arson of the building owned by John Lazorchak, a landscaper with offices next door.
Mr. Westover also pleaded guilty to third-degree burglary for entering the structure without permission and with the intent to start the structure on fire, according to the Prosecutor’s Office.
The state recommended a noncustodial probationary sentence for the defendant. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 22 before Superior Court Judge Julie Marino.
If accepted by the judge, the deal would end the 2-plus-year-old case.
Mr. Lazorchak, who is also the chief of the Neshanic Fire Department, said he had been consulted by prosecutors who asked him if he wanted restitution, but he declined.
”My position is I wanted the matter closed out,” Mr. Lazorchak said Tuesday. “It’s gone on long enough.”
Greg Gillette, the chairman of the township Historic Preservation Commission, had this reaction in an email:
”Westover’s plea deal is a matter for the courts. The tragedy here is that we had an historic 18th-century house that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it was owned by someone who didn’t care to see it preserved and actively pursued its demolition, which led to someone burning it down for reasons they can’t explain. Sad.”
Mr. Westover’s age, health and criminal history were taken into account, said Chanel Hudson, his public defender. Mr. Westover has suffered physical and mental health issues and underwent psychiatric testing to evaluate whether he was fit to stand trial.
”This has been a very emotional two years for him” Ms. Hudson said. “His eyes welled up when he made his plea.”
The prosecutor said Mr. Westover admitted the crime when questioned in 2011, but Ms. Hudson “took difference” with that, she said.
For years, Mr. Lazorchak had sought to remove what he said was a dangerous and decrepit structure. His office plan approval in 2007 started a chain of appeals by historic preservationists.
Mr. Lazorchak was in the process of a new round of hearings to create a record to justify demolition when the fire at 697 Amwell Road broke out in the unoccupied house shortly before 7:30 on a Sunday morning.
Almost immediately, law enforcement declared the cause to be suspicious.
Preservationists claimed the one-and-one-half-story structure had architectural elements of a distinct period of more than 200 years ago.