Mental evaluation ordered in Ogden arsons

OGDEN — A woman accused of setting a series of fires in a blighted downtown neighborhood has been ordered to undergo a mental evaluation.

During a routine court appearance Monday in 2nd District Court, a judge appointed a professional to examine Marianne Mancuso to determine her competency, court clerks told the Deseret News. A competency review hearing will be held Dec. 15.

She also retained private counsel to represent her, clerks said.

Mancuso, 47, is charged with three counts of second-degree felony arson and a fourth count of arson, a third-degree felony. Ogden police say she set two homes on fire in her neighborhood in an effort to jump-start a long-stalled redevelopment project planned for the neighborhood.

She remains in the Weber County Jail in lieu of $30,000 bail.

— Ben Winslow