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Michigan Man Gets 13 to 20 Years for Horse Barn Arson
by: Erin Ryder, News Editor
May 24 2007 Article # 9647

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A Marysville, Mich., man who pleaded guilty to charges of setting a fire that resulted in the death of 18 horses has been sentenced to 13 to 20 years in prison, the Port Huron Times Herald reported.

According to the report, the fire at Classic Quarter Horses was one of several John Jay Searle set along a road in Clyde Township Sept. 8 and 9, 2006. A doghouse, porch, and truck were among other items burned.

St. Clair County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Melissa Keyes told the Times Herald the sentence exceeded what was recommended by sentencing guidelines, because the guidelines did not account for the horses' lives or the economic and emotional loss.

"It's just something that not many people can relate to," Keyes said. "The connection that the horse owners had to their horses was very close."