By Sharon Noguchi
The Contra Costa Times
SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose Fire officials said Thursday that the fire that destroyed classrooms at Trace Elementary School was started outside the building by two teenagers.
In a news conference today where no other details were revealed, officials confirmed that they arrested a 17-year-old boy on Tuesday and a 16-year-old boy on Wednesday. Both are San Jose residents, Fire Marshal Ivan Lee said, but neither boy had attended Trace. Another boy was questioned and released Wednesday.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office will likely decide today whether to file charges, Assistant District Attorney David Howe said.
At the news conference, Lee and other officials declined to release other details about the suspects, including what school they attend, and about the origin of the July 5 fire. Because the suspects are juveniles, information about them and the case is closed to the public.
Lee said that the $10,000 reward offered by firefighters and the $5,000 reward offered by San Jose Unified School District helped bring forth people who had information about who may have started the fire.
“This is the culmination of three months of hard work,” Lee said. Fire investigators sorted through many tips, he said. The San Jose Police Department, Santa Clara County Arson Task Force, the Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office helped the investigation, Fire Chief William McDonald said.
Howe of the District Attorney’s Office would not say whether prosecutors are considering charging the boys as adults. In general, that decision is based on the type of offense, the degree of criminal sophistication, the child’s role in the crime, and prospects for rehabilitation through Juvenile Court.
Deputy District Attorney David Boyd, a prosecutor who specializes in arson and bomb cases, is reviewing the case.
While school officials were happy that those responsible have apparently been identified, “What saddens us most is that the suspects are juveniles,” San Jose Unified Superintendent Vincent Matthews said. He said he didn’t know if the two boys arrested are district students.
The case is a reminder, he said, that students need not only their academic needs met, but also their social and emotion needs met.
Officials would not discuss the case against the boys, but said a combination of witnesses and evidence led to the arrests. They also said that the fire began outside the 25,000-square-foot building, but would not say where or how the blaze began.
The fire caused from $10 million to $15 million worth of damage, Matthews said.
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