Felony arson charges have been filed against a Trenton man who was already incarcerated in the Grundy County Detention Center.
According to a probable cause statement contained in online court records, Joshua D. Phillips, 41, is charged with second degree arson, a class D felony, in connection with a fire at 213 E. Crowder Rd. on Jan. 22. The house, owned by Russell and Beatrice Shaw, sustained extensive damage in the fire, which was investigated by the Missouri Division of Fire Safety. Investigator Tyler Anderson classified the fire as incendiary due to burn patterns and three or more places of origin with no clear pathway between those places.
On Feb. 10, Phillips was interviewed and said he took a five-gallon gas can from his father’s residence at 1600 Mable St., and walked to the Shaw house, which was vacant at the time. He said he poured the gas onto the floor in the living room, dining room and kitchen before dropping a lit ZZ Top lighter onto the floor in the dining room. That lighter was found on the floor of the dining room.
The probable cause statement indicates that Phillips showed no remorse or regard for the safety of others.
Phillips, who was already being held in the Grundy County Detention Center on a probation violation, is being held without bond.
In another note about the case, Grundy County Associate Judge Steven D. Hudson, who would normally hear the case in it’s initial phase, has recused himself due to the defendant recently having made death threats against the judge. Judge Richard Brent Elliott of the 43rd Circuit has been appointed to hear the case.
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