Judge Rules Walmart Arson Suspect Not Competent to Stand Trial
Written by WKTN Staff on August 12, 2019
A judge ruled that the defendant accused of setting a fire at the Kenton Walmart store back in May is not competent to stand trial at this time.
U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey J. Helmick ordered that Caleb T. Poole be hospitalized for a period not to exceed four months to determine whether there is a substantial probability that he will attain the capacity to permit the case to proceed.
The Attorney General’s Office was charged with hospitalizing Poole in a suitable facility and providing updates to the Court.
Poole allegedly was captured on the store’s security camera placing items in a cart then setting them on fire.
Some of the items were said to have been aerosol cans which created an explosion.
While the fire was contained to a small area, smoke and water damage was estimated at around one million dollars.
