From Deseret News archives:
Cooperation eases sentence in BYU fire
Harrison David Burrows, 18, was sentenced Monday but will be allowed to turn himself in Jan. 28 to an institution chosen by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. He previously pleaded guilty to one count of destruction of property by fire in connection with a fire he set July 8 with another man.
In an earlier statement to the court, Burrows stated, "We started the fires to make a political statement on behalf of the Animal Liberation Front," an animal-rights group that has been linked in the past to other crimes.
U.S. Attorney Robert Lunnen previously called the incident "domestic terrorism arson."
Burrows acknowledged he used gasoline to ignite bales of cardboard kept in the recycling area of Brigham Young University's Ellsworth Farm, which has been the site of other fires in the past.
"It was a mighty serious business he was involved in down there," U.S. District Judge David Winder said Monday.
However, because Burrows took full responsibility for his actions and offered "substantial assistance" to law enforcement officials — especially the FBI — federal prosecutors entered a motion asking the judge to sentence Burrows to a lesser term than the five- year minimum mandatory.
Prosecutors also agreed not to lodge other charges against Burrows that could have resulted in a far stiffer sentence.
"I would just like to offer my apologies to this court and the community," Burrows said.
Just two months shy of his 19th birthday and looking considerably younger, the diminutive Burrows was accompanied to court by his parents, who now live in West Virginia with Burrows' eight siblings.
Winder acknowledged getting "very eloquent letters" from Burrows and his parents, but noted the young man was being sentenced "pursuant to law, not pursuant to sympathy" and repeated that the charge was a serious one.
"Don't let your family down and the community down," the judge warned.
Winder also imposed 36 months supervised release after Burrows gets out of prison and $75,000 in restitution, which might be partially paid by any accomplice if someone else is convicted in the case.
The judge said he would recommend that Burrows be incarcerated at a federal prison in Ashland, Ky., which Burrows and his family had asked for, but Winder noted that his recommendations are not binding to the prisons bureau.
E-mail: lindat@desnews.com
