Nov 19, 2009 11:43 pm US/Eastern
Plea Deal Reached In Coatesville Arson Case
WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) ―
A former assistant fire chief accused of setting two small fires in an arson-plagued steel town near Philadelphia has worked out a plea bargain freeing him from jail.
Chester County Judge Anthony Sarcione says the plea deal for Robert Tracey Jr. is a surprise.
The 37-year-old Coatesville man got a sentence of the 242 days he has already served to 23 months in prison. Sarcione says he would never consider such a short sentence Tracey had been convicted at trial. But Sarcione approved the deal Thursday after both sides referred to the risk of going to trial.
Tracey admitted setting fire to a porch seat cushion in March, then trying to ignite a trash can three blocks away.
Tracey is one of seven suspects arrested in connection with a rash of fires in Coatesville and nearby communities that began in February 2008.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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