Couple sentenced in Great Falls arson case

A man and woman who both pleaded guilty to arson charges were sentenced at back-to-back hearings Friday morning.

Brandon Fondren and Adrianne Davenport both received 10-year prison terms with an additional 10 years of probation.

Fondren pleaded guilty to accountability to arson and theft, while Davenport pleaded guilty to arson and theft. The defendants signed separate plea agreements with the state.

Davenport and Fondren, who were considered common-law spouses, admitted to setting a fire at their apartment, 1320 9th St. N., No. 40 the night of May 11, 2015.

A woman with two small children lived in the apartment above the defendants. An elderly man living next door sought medical treatment for smoke inhalation.

According to court testimony, the state considered Davenport to be the instigator of the plan.

The case’s lead detective, Dan Smith of the Great Falls Police Department, testified at the hearings. He told the court Davenport was connected to several other fires, including one at the Imperial Inn in Great Falls, and others out of state. She was never charged with any other arson charges.

Smith and Great Falls Fire Marshal Dirk Johnson testified about the investigation, which was cut short after the defendants changed their pleas and admitted to setting the fire to collect money from a renter’s insurance policy obtained 10 days before the fire.

Johnson explained that a power strip recovered at the apartment was tampered with, prompting police involvement in the case. The power strip was not the source of the fire, Johnson explained, but testing for accelerants was canceled after the change of plea hearings.

Prosecutor Jennifer Quick said arson cases are typically proved by eliminating potential fire sources. She said the cases are difficult to prove because “your evidence burns up.”

The state recommended Davenport serve a longer sentence than Fondren. Quick summarized the state’s view of the evidence while making her sentencing recommendation to District Judge John Kutzman. She explained that Davenport was connected to the previous fires, that she and Fondren were seen moving belongings out of their apartment and into a nearby storage unit where textbooks about arson investigation were also located.

The insurance policy was taken out days before the fire and the suspicious power strip was purchased a week before the fire, according to a receipt found in the storage unit.

“The power strip was an attempt to make it look accidental,” Quick told the judge. “A lot of forethought and planning went into this.”

But Davenport’s court-appointed attorney, Sam Harris, said his client didn’t dream up the plan.

Harris elicited testimony from Davenport of her troubled past, a learning disability and several mental health conditions including schizophrenia. Harris described Davenport as a “low-functioning” adult who has been used by men.

Davenport also testified that she did not fully understand the potential deadly nature of the crime.

“I don’t think it’s fair to call her the mastermind,” Harris said.

According to court testimony, Davenport gave birth to a child while incarcerated awaiting the resolution of this case. She admitted to having six other children being cared for by others. Her parental rights to five of those children were terminated.

In the end, Kutzman told both defendants were it not for Great Falls Fire/Rescue’s quick response they might have faced deliberate homicide charges instead.

Kutzman opted to give Davenport the same sentence as her co-defendant instead of the additional five years the state recommended.

“You have more history with this sort of thing than he does,” Kutzman explained, “but you have limitations Mr. Fondren does not.”

Both Fondren and Davenport received a 20-year prison term with 10 years suspended on their arson charges. They each received an additional five years of probation on a second charge of theft. Those sentences will run concurrent to one another.

Both were ordered to contribute to the payment of $58,391.45 in restitution to be split among two insurance companies, the City of Great Falls and a rental company.

Andrea Fisher is the crime and breaking news reporter for the Great Falls Tribune. Reach her at 791-6585. Like Facebook.com/gftrib_andrea and follow @gftrib_andrea on Twitter.