Prosecutor confirms cause of fatal 1993 Jeannette fire undetermined, but says murder and arson convictions should stand

Westmoreland County prosecutors told a judge Monday that an expert hired to review evidence used to convict a Jeannette man of intentionally starting a deadly fire in 1993 could not conclude the arson was arson.

James Young, 57, is serving three life sentences after being convicted of setting fire to his family’s 14th Street home, killing his 26-year-old wife, Gina Marie, his stepson, Shaun Holden, 3, and the couple’s 7-month-old son, Joshua.

At a 1995 trial, prosecutors alleged that Young had spread gasoline around the property and set the house on fire. Investigators concluded that the cause of the fire was foul play.

Young, with the help of attorneys from the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, is arguing that the conviction should be overturned because the scientific authority authorities relied on in the initial investigation has since been discredited. The same evidence would now support a finding that the cause of the fire was undetermined and would not result in a conviction against Young, according to attorney Elizabeth DeLosa of the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.

Assistant District Attorneys Leo Ciaramitaro and Elizabeth Ranger said a new expert hired by prosecutors evaluated the fire evidence using current investigative methods and concluded the cause of the fire was undetermined, but suggested that conclusion would not change the ultimate disposition of the case.

The indeterminate classification does not rule out arson as the cause of the fire, Ciaramitaro said.

Melanie Jones, a spokeswoman for District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli, said prosecutors will continue to oppose any effort to get Young a new trial.

“This decision does not change the prosecutor’s prosecution efforts or his position to uphold Mr. Young’s conviction,” Jones said in an email.

Young has been in prison since his arrest in 1993.

According to evidence collected at Young’s 1995 trial, investigators found gasoline cans outside the home and traces of gasoline in Young’s baby’s diaper. Fire-sniffing dogs detected evidence of an accelerant.

Witnesses said they saw Young walking on the roof of the house as it burned and that he refused to save his family as his wife called for help from an upstairs window.

Young claimed he did not start the fire.

DeLosa said the evidence does not indicate the fire was caused by arson.

“Undetermined causes include multiple accidental causes that have not been ruled out by the experts. The expert testimony (at trial) has been denied,” DeLosa said. “We would not represent Mr. Young if we did not believe he is innocent.”

Westmoreland County Magistrate Court Judge Christopher Feliciani said he will make a decision on whether Young should be granted a new trial after reviewing written legal arguments that attorneys have been ordered to file over the next four months.