Son Burns Mom's Home, Faces Arson Charges: Firefighters

PASADENA, MD — A Howard County man faces arson charges in the burning of his mother's home in Anne Arundel County, firefighters said.

Fire officials accused 63-year-old Michael Lindsay Perry of Woodstock of setting the Pasadena blaze last week.

"Arson is a very serious crime. We don't take arson lightly," Anne Arundel County Fire Department spokesperson Donald Clime told Patch on Tuesday.

Fire investigators said they quickly identified the suspect with the help of police officers and Jessie, a fire K-9 who suffered a minor injury.

"She was seen by a vet, and she's going to be okay," Clime said of Jessie. "She was instrumental in solving this case and connecting the evidence with the suspect."

Crews said a neighbor reported the blaze last Wednesday around 4:30 p.m. in the 100 block of Club Road. The caller also described a person seen leaving the one-story, single-family home just as the fire began.

First responders said they extinguished the flames while the Anne Arundel County Police Department detained the suspect.

Court records show that Perry was charged with:

• First-degree arson (Felony)
• Second-degree arson (Felony)
• First-degree malicious burning (Felony)
• Second-degree malicious burning (Misdemeanor)
• Reckless endangerment (Misdemeanor)

The case file also says Perry was charged with threatening arson, a misdemeanor, days prior on March 28 in the eastern district of Anne Arundel County. That case also includes a felony charge that's a variation of second-degree assault related to fire crimes.

A judge held Perry without bond last Friday, the record says, but another bond review is scheduled for this Friday.

"This case was almost solved from the get-go. Thank you to our police brothers and sisters who helped respond to the scene and helped detain a suspect," Clime said.

This map shows the area where first responders said the fire happened.