State v. Hall

Defendant, Richard Edward Hall, having been charged with second-degree arson, appeals his conviction by a Pierce County jury for the lesser-included crime of first-degree reckless burning, RCW 9A.48.040. The charge stemmed from a railroad trestle fire near McKenna, Washington, on August 5, 1977.

On appeal he claims two instructional errors and accuses the State of withholding and failing to preserve evidence. We find no substantial merit to these claims and affirm the conviction. The essential factual setting follows.

Defendant, a high school senior, left home after having an argument with his…