By Calvin Men
The Santa Cruz Sentinel
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — A 20-year-old Soquel woman on trial for torching a Twin Lakes home was talking incoherently about God and the devil when authorities found her half-dressed behind the burning home, prosecutors said Thursday during opening statements.
Marian Elamri Kadmiri is charged with two counts of felony arson stemming from a fire at a Geoffroy Drive home on Jan. 13. As firefighters worked to battle the fire that engulfed the oceanfront side of the house, they found Kadmiri on the back deck. She was partially undressed and incoherent.
During the first day of the trial in Santa Cruz County Superior Court, prosecutor Shannon Murphy said Kadmiri wanted to get help, though she didn’t elaborate.
“She told deputies, ‘I wanted to get help, so I decided to burn things,’” Murphy told jurors.
But defense attorney Zach Schwarzbach contended there was no hard evidence that Kadmiri started the fire.
“No one saw her set the fire,” he said in opening statements before Judge John Salazar.
He also said statements Kadmiri made about the fire were taken during a psychotic episode.
Kadmiri has a history of serious mental health issues, which will have a large impact on how the case plays out, Schwarzbach said.
In January, Kadmiri broke into two vacation homes: one on the corner of 25th Avenue and East Cliff Drive and one on Geoffrey Drive, Murphy said.
At the 25th Avenue home, Kadmiri went through the homeowner’s belongings and trashed the home before lighting a paper towel roll on fire using a gas stove, Murphy said.
In addition to leaving behind her purse, which had a driver’s license, Kadmiri’s fingerprints were found on a broken wine bottle, Murphy said.
At the Geoffroy Drive home, surveillance footage shows Kadmiri entering and exiting the house. A fire that started on the stove eventually spread and destroyed the living room, kitchen and second floor, Murphy said.
Kadmiri had been charged with two counts of burglary but those were dropped after a ruling about what evidence would be allowed.
Testimony is expected to continue Friday.
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(c)2013 the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Scotts Valley, Calif.)
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