Dog and child set on fire Elyria, OH (US) Incident Date: Thursday, Jul 31, 2003 County: Lorain Local Map: available Disposition: Not Charged Person of Interest: Nicole Diar Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

Case ID: 5767 Classification: Burning - Fire or Fireworks Animal: dog (non pit-bull) View more cases in OH (US) Login to Watch this Case

A woman who was severely burned as a child has been found guilty of killing her 4-year-old son and setting his body on fire. An Ohio jury convicted Nicole Diar on 10 counts on Oct 17, including two of aggravated murder aggravated arson and tampering with evidence. The 28-year-old woman could receive the death penalty.

When firefighters discovered her son Jacob's body, he was so badly burned that the coroner was unable to determine a cause of death. Prosecutors believe Jacob was suffocated or drowned before Diar burned his body and his new puppy.

Prosecutors allege Diar drugged Jacob with codeine, then strangled him as he slept in his bedroom, before setting the house on fire.

"Jacob went to bed one evening in his mother's home, in his mother's care and never woke up again," said Gary Bennett, the Lorain County prosecutor.

The October coroner's report ruled the death a homicide and stated that the cause of death was "violence of an unknown origin."

The defense said the woman wasn't capable of setting the blaze because Diar herself sustained disfiguring injuries in a fire when she was also 4 years old. The woman was burned as a child when her brother ignited her nightgown with a lighter. She underwent years of surgery so that she could move her arms and neck.

Diar had said that God was responsible for the death of her son Jacob's August 2003 death. She said, "He burned me, and now He burned him."

Some of the most damaging testimony came from baby sitters who watched Jacob, according to WEWS in Cleveland.

Months before Jacob's death in August 2003, Diar drugged him with codeine while she went out to party, baby sitters testified.

"His well-being was secondary to her lifestyle," Assistant Prosecutor Tony Cillo said. "She couldn't be bothered."

Sitters told the court Jacob was actually afraid to sleep in his second-floor room.

Police also said that on the night of the crime, Diar was out for a night on the town, drinking and singing into a karaoke machine.

But the defense painted a different picture of a loving mother who always cared for the well-being of her son.

Some neighbors alleged the boy was at times neglected.

Diar's lawyer, Jack Bradley, admitted his client wasn't the best mother but questioned a report from state fire investigators that had the fire starting in different rooms.

"Faulty forensics can lead to faulty evidence," Bradley said in closing arguments.

If she gets the death penalty, Diar would be the second woman on Ohio's death row.

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References

The Indy Channel - Oct 18, 2005

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