Case Details

Arson - 3 children, family dog die in fire
Colorado Springs, CO (US)

Incident Date: Friday, Mar 7, 2003
County: El Paso
Local Map: available
Disposition: Convicted
Charges: Misdemeanor

Abuser/Suspect: Timothy Paul Nicholls

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 6401
Classification: Burning - Fire or Fireworks
Animal: dog (non pit-bull)
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Drugs or alcohol involved
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Timothy Paul Nicholls, 35, a father charged with starting a house fire that killed his two daughters and his stepson will stand trial April 4.

Nicholls waived his right to a bail hearing Friday and will stay in jail until his trial. If convicted, Nicholls would face the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

Eleven-year-old Jay, 3-year-old Sierra and 5-year-old Sophia Nicholls died March 7, 2003, after a fire swept through the family�s Village Seven home at 4107 Undimmed Circle off North Carefree Circle. All died of smoke inhalation. Their deaths were ruled homicides in July 2003, when Colorado Springs firefighters determined the blaze was arson.

Nicholls, who reportedly jumped from a second-story window, was in the front yard when firefighters arrived. He was hospitalized for burns and released four days later.

In July, a 4th Judicial District grand jury indicted Nicholls on suspicion of 18 counts including setting the fire.

His estranged wife, Deborah Nicholls, 38, was indicted on drug charges. She is charged with possessing cocaine and methamphetamine and unlawful use of meth. She was not indicted in her children�s deaths. She also was indicted on suspicion of attempted theft in connection with allegedly trying to defraud her insurance company of $660 for her car. The indictment says she told the insurance company her 1997 Chevrolet Camaro had been damaged by the fire although it was not. Nicholls was arrested again in August on suspicion of threatening her mother, who testified before the grand jury investigating the deaths. She�ll be in court Dec. 12 on a charge of intimidating a witness � a felony punishable by up to six years in prison.

Although the indictment doesn�t say why the fatal fire was set, it says the family was having financial problems and that Timothy Nicholls attempted to collect more than $250,000 on an insurance policy covering the home.

According to an arrest affidavit on the intimidation accusation, she called her mother and accused her of trying to �take down� Timothy Nicholls.

Timothy and Deborah Nicholls separated in July 2003 and have since filed for divorce.

The 18 counts Timothy Nicholls faces include three counts of first degree murder, three counts of first-degree murder of a child less than 12 years old by someone in a position of trust, three counts of child abuse resulting in death and three counts of fourth-degree arson. He also faces third-degree arson with intent to defraud, attempted theft in connection with the insurance claim, two counts of drug possession and one count of animal cruelty because the family dog died in the fire.

Case Updates

Complete List of Counts and Verdicts:

1) Murder in the First Degree, Felony Murder: Guilty
2) Murder in the First Degree, Felony Murder: Guilty
3) Murder in the First Degree, Felony Murder: Guilty
4) Murder in the First Degree of a Child Under Age 12: No Decision
5) Murder in the First Degree of a Child Under Age 12: No Decision
6) Murder in the First Degree of a Child Under Age 12: No Decision
7) Child Abuse Resulting in Death of Jay Nicholls: Guilty
8) Child Abuse Resulting in Death of Sophia Nicholls: Guilty
9) Child Abuse Resulting in Death of Sierra Nicholls: Guilty
10) 4th Degree Arson for Jay Nicholls: Guilty
11) 4th Degree Arson for Sophia Nicholls: Guilty
12) 4th Degree Arson for Sierra Nicholls: Guilty
13) 3rd Degree Arson with the Intent to Defraud: Guilty
14) Attempted Theft: Guilty
15) Possession of a Controlled Substance (Cocaine): Guilty
16) Possession of a Controlled Substance (Meth): Guilty
17) Use of Meth: Guilty
18) Animal Cruelty: Guilty
19) Conspiracy to Commit Murder: No Decision
Source: KRDO - May 2, 2007
Update posted on May 2, 2007 - 10:31PM 
A jury today declared Timothy Nicholls guilty of murder and arson in the death of his three children in a 2003 house fire.

The decision came shortly after 10 a.m. in a hushed Colorado Springs courtroom, capping weeks of dramatic court hearings in which Nicholls was portrayed alternately as a struggling businessman desperate for an insurance payout, and a loving father devastated at the fire that killed his children.

The jury deliberated for about 30 hours on the 19 criminal counts, including first-degree murder, arson, drug possession, child abuse, animal abuse, conspiracy and theft. The verdict was reached about an hour after the jury reconvened for deliberations this morning.

Jurors couldn�t reach a decision on two charges: conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and premeditated first-degree murder.

Still, the first-degree felony murder conviction means Nicholls will serve life in prison without the possibility of parole. A sentencing hearing is set for May 17.

Prosecutors said the fire was set to collect insurance money.

The children � Jay, 11, Sophia, 5 and Sierra, 3 � died in the March 7, 2003, fire that destroyed the family�s home in the Village Seven neighborhood. Nicholls was injured in the fire, and initially authorities believed the blaze was accidental. But after a painstaking investigation, authorities accused Nicholls of intentionally setting the fire.

Arson investigators found traces of an accelerant on the childrens� pajamas, and a mostly empty can of Goof Off, a highly-flammable cleaning solvent, was found under bushes outside the home.

District Attorney John Newsome said he pursued the case even after previous prosecutors decided the case couldn�t be won. He said the day after he took office in 2005, a letter arrived on his desk from Sandra Wilson, the children�s grandmother, begging him to look into the �murder of her grandkids.�

Today, Wilson said: �This is the second saddest day of my life. The first was when I lost those kids. The horror is, I believe it�s true ... I�m here for Jay, Sophia and Sierra. My wish is that they now rest in peace.�

Nicholls showed no emotion as the judge read the verdict. His head was bowed slightly, and he put his hands behind his back. He declined an offer to poll the jurors for each vote in the verdict.

Spectators and journalists packed the courtroom. The audience seemed to hold its collective breath as the first verdict was read � the one in which the jury couldn�t reach a decision. Then there were quiet sobs and some in the courtroom hugged as the second verdict was read, convicting Nicholls of felony murder.

�I�m obviously disappointed,� defense attorney Dennis Hartley said moments after hearing his client will spend the rest of his life in prison. �The verdict is the verdict. The jury worked hard on this case. It was a complicated case, and I didn�t have a lot of time to prepare. Felony murder is always going to be hard (to defend).�

Hartley had argued the fire was accidentally caused by a candle. Asked what he would take away from the case, Hartley said: �When I�m done, I try to forget �em.�

The jury left the back of the courtroom about 12:15 p.m., hurrying across the hall as sheriff�s deputies escorted them to the judge�s chambers. The men and women were young and old, black and white, and some wore large, dark sunglasses obscuring their faces. They said nothing to the media in response to requests for comment.

The trial started March 19, and jurors heard about 13 days of testimony from prosecutors, were given hundreds of pieces of evidence, and listened to almost three days of the defense�s case. Nicholls took the stand and denied setting the fire or planning to kill his children, whom he said he loved. The case against Nicholls was largely built on evidence and analysis compiled by arson investigators with the Colorado Springs Fire Department.

A smoke-stained house with plywood-covered windows still sits in the center of Undimmed Circle, an otherwise quiet street that typifies suburban life.

News of the verdict upset next-door neighbor Jan Miles, a friend of the Nichollses who has lived on the street for 16 years and believes Nicholls was wrongfully convicted.

�I watched him play with his children,� she said. �These people loved their children.�

She became tearful when recalling memories of the Nicholls children playing with her grandchildren, and she said that the man she once socialized with in the front yard over a beer was no murderer.

She recalled how the children would swim in a kiddie pool in the front yard and Nicholls would interact with them. �It�s horrible. It�s just horrible.�

Larry Litke moved to Undimmed Circle in September and learned its tragic past from other neighbors. He said the story of what happened there will outlive any changes the property undergoes.

�Even after it will be cleaned up, remodeled or whatever, the image of that will resurface.�

No one answered the doorbell at the last known address for Nicholls� wife, Deborah Nicholls, who faces her own charges in connection with the fire.

Deborah Nicholls, who wasn�t home when the fire broke out, refused to testify at Timothy Nicholls� trial, citing her Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination.

Deborah Nicholls has been charged with methamphetamine possession and felony theft, for allegedly trying to defraud her insurance company by making a claim for a car undamaged in the fire. Her trial is set for August.
Source: Colorado Springs Gazette - May 1, 2007
Update posted on May 1, 2007 - 7:53PM 

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References

Gazette - December 3, 2005

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