Rebuilding Prospect Heights hall after arson

Shortly after 10 p.m. April 13, 2006, someone smashed in a back office window of the Prospect Heights city hall.

For reasons known only to the arsonist, the perpetrator poured a mixture of gasoline and oil through the broken window and set it on fire. By the time the Prospect Heights Fire Department arrived from just a block away, the fire was burning through the roof.

The fire burned so quickly that Prospect Heights Fire Chief Donald Gould knew immediately this was no ordinary fire.

"It was a bad situation from the get-go," Gould said.

"I had to pull the guys out after five minutes. I knew something was really going on there."

More than two years after one of the Chicago area's worst public-property destruction crimes, the case is still unsolved, Gould said.

Police say they have leads but need a break to have enough evidence to make an arrest in the case.

Arson is a crime that's not easy to solve, said Sam Giordano, professor of fire science technology at Harper College in Palatine and program coordinator for fire science and emergency management.

Without an eyewitness or physical evidence like fingerprints, it's hard for investigators to make a case. Then you're hoping for a confession, he said.

"It's like a jigsaw puzzle," Giordano said. "You have a thousand pieces, but some of the pieces are missing and the other pieces are damaged, and you have to put the picture back together."

The city has not found closure as far as finding the arsonist, but it has gotten its hall back after employees spent two years working out of the basement of the police department. Officials will dedicate and celebrate the new city hall during a ceremony from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 12. The building's now decked out with a sprinkler system and a noncombustible roof, features that should help prevent a repeat, accidental or intentional.

Construction of the new Prospect Heights city hall cost $2.8 million, paid by insurance companies.

Arson is one of those felonies that doesn't have a statute of limitations, so police hope someone will come forward or the perpetrator will make a mistake.

"If no one saw anything and 90 percent of a property is destroyed, it's very difficult unless someone talks," Police Chief Bruce Morris said.

No one was hurt or killed in the Prospect Heights fire, but others have not been so lucky.

According to the National Fire Protection Agency, 490 civilian and three firefighters died in 2005 in nearly 324,000 arson fires. About 1,500 people were injured in addition to 7,600 injuries to firefighters.

Nationally, arson is to blame for more than a billion dollars in property damage every year, experts say.

Arson is largely underreported because the fire destroys the evidence. That being the case, it's estimated that about 50 percent of fires could be set by arsonists, according to the Illinois State Fire Marshal.

And crime statistics indicate only about 5 percent to 7 percent of arson offenses result in convictions. About 50 percent of those arrested are under the age of 18, according to the FBI.

Arsonists' motives range from concealment of a crime, to revenge or spite, to malicious vandalism, to monetary gain, to mental illness.

Crime concealment and monetary gain seem unlikely in the Prospect Heights case, Morris said, which leaves revenge or spite, vandalism or mental illness.

"We'll never get the motive until we talk to the guy," Morris said. "Either he just likes to do it, or has some kind of revenge toward that government or government in general - that's the strongest motives to work with."

The former Prospect Heights city hall, a small, red brick building at 8 N. Elmhurst Road, had become a target long before it burned down.

Two years before the fire, vandals intermittently broke windows, glued door locks and slashed tires on city vehicles, including squad cars, city officials said.

"I have no idea who would do this," former Mayor Rodney Pace said of the arson, which occurred while he was in office.

"There are always people who are unhappy and in this day and age, with people's problems with drugs and alcohol, who knows what's in their minds? It's just unfortunate that someone had to do that to a city.

"Either it was a prank or a spiteful act. It's wrong either way."

Rebuilding: Arson causes a billion dollars in damage every year

Arson facts

Arson takes a terrible toll on people and property. Here's a look at some numbers on the 2005 cost:

• Lives lost: 490 civilians, 3 firefighters

• People injured: 1,500 civilians, 7,600 firefighters

• Property damage: More than $1 billion

• Arrests: Half are of people under age 18

• Convictions: Occur in only 5 percent to 7 percent of arsons

Sources: National Fire Protection Agency, FBI