MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A 22-year-old Milwaukee woman entered a not guilty plea to a misdemeanor charge after a fire destroyed an abandoned building on the city's north side last week.
Ellen Stevens is charged with negligent handling of burning material in connection with the fire near 32nd and Hampton, which started last Wednesday night.
Dozens of firefighters from Milwaukee and surrounding departments spent hours battling the blaze at Bishops Creek, a building previously deemed unsafe and at risk of collapse.
According to a criminal complaint, Stevens admitted to flicking a cigarette inside the building, telling police she believed it was extinguished. About 30 minutes later, the building was engulfed in flames.
The complaint states Stevens posted a photo of herself on Snapchat after the fire started with the caption: "I may or may not have lit the bando on fire today on accident." Bando is slang for an abandoned building.
"If it was carelessness or malicious, that really bothers me," Deputy Fire Chief Ron Firnrohr said.
Milwaukee Police declined a request for an interview about why Stevens was charged with only a misdemeanor.
We spoke with criminal defense attorney Russell Jones, who does not represent Stevens, to better understand the charging decision.
Watch: Woman accused of starting Bishops Creek building fire pleads not guilty to misdemeanor charge
Jones said the charge appears appropriate given the circumstances.
"Well, it sounds like this was a case where somebody negligently got rid of a cigarette. They didn't anticipate or intend any of the damage or the fire," Jones said.
Jones explained that intent is a critical factor in determining whether someone can be charged with felony arson.
"Crimes are generally charged on what people intended to do, rather than the consequences," Jones added.
"They were on the property improperly, but they had no intent to burn it down. It doesn't sound like there's any indication of an accelerant or any connection to the building where they wanted to burn it down," Jones explained.
Before and after Stevens' court appearance on Tuesday, we tried to ask her questions regarding the fire and her social media posts about it. She declined to comment.
Stevens is back in court in July.
This story was reported on-air by Jenna Rae and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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