United States of America v. James A. Bartels

Columbus, Ohio criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with causing 26 arson fires in Wayne National Forest

Former Greenfield Township fire department administrator sentenced to prison for causing 26 arson fires in Wayne National Forest

James A. Bartels, 52, of Rio Grande, Ohio, started 26 fires in the national forest in 2022, creating a substantial risk of death or significant injury to the public, as well as to firefighters from federal, state and local governments who were summoned to extinguish the fires.



In total, more than 100 firefighters from several states responded to the fires. Approximately 1,300 acres of federal and state land were burned, and the U.S. Forest Service incurred more than $638,000 in resulting expenditures.



At the time, Bartels was an administrator at the Greenfield Township Volunteer Fire Department. He also served as a police officer at various law enforcement agencies in Ohio and a 911 dispatcher for Gallia County.



Ohio Department of Natural Resources law enforcement officers observed a truck registered to Bartels near Wayne National Forest on Oct. 29, 2022. Within an hour, a fire was reported in the forest near where Bartels had been.



In the days after Bartels's Nov. 8, 2022, resignation from working as a 911 dispatcher for Gallia County, at least 17 fires were lit.



Bartels was seen at two separate locations in the vicinity of multiple fire starts within minutes of their ignition. His truck's infotainment system data also placed him at the locations of the fires.



Bartels admitted to starting the fires with a lighter to "give the boys something to do” and to distract himself from his depression.



The defendant was arrested in December 2022 and pleaded guilty in September 2023. As part of his sentence, Bartels was ordered to pay $638,000 in restitution and register through the Ohio Arson Registry.



Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and the U.S. Forest Service announced the sentence imposed on Feb. 7 by U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley. Deputy Criminal Chief Brian J. Martinez represented the United States at sentencing.