What is Cause and Origin in A Fire Investigation

Since the beginning of time, fire has been both a friend and a foe of mankind. Throughout history, mankind has studied how to create, harness, and control fire to provide warmth during the cold months and heat to cook our food. But what happens when things go wrong, and an unplanned fire destroys property or causes death? This is where the criminal and civil justice system enters the picture, to figure out the cause and the origin, and determine if the fire was criminal or negligent in nature.

To make that determination, fire departments and county prosecutors call upon special experts known as fire cause and origin experts. These experts must be knowledgeable in chemistry, engineering, physics, and building codes to understand the unique properties of each fire. They must also be familiar with fire accelerants and containment systems.

What Are Fire Cause and Origin Experts?

There are all types of fires. Fires can be caused by natural, industrial, and electrical fires, including unplanned explosions, and residential fires started by several causes. The initial investigators are usually fire department officials. Thereafter, and for more complex cases, Cause and Origin Experts are called in to help. After a fire, these trained investigators arrive at the scene to determine the precise location where the fire ignited, which is commonly called the “point of origin.”  Their investigation is not complete until the exact cause of the fire is determined, which is known as the “source.”  This information is important for determining fault and legal responsibility that may require insurance companies to often pay millions of dollars in property damage or for physical harm.

Causation forensics is important to rule out arson, which is a crime when one intends to cause physical injury or to intentionally set a fire to make a claim against their own insurance fire insurance policy. For that reason, prosecutors and insurance companies routinely hire highly trained forensic experts. Arson routinely leads to criminal prosecution, trial, conviction, and punishment, including imprisonment. For example, in the State of New Jersey, engaging in or paying or accepting payment to set a fire or targeting a place of worship is considered first-degree arson, punishable by 10 to 20 years in state prison and fines up to $200,000.  And if a commercial property owner engages in intentional conduct such as removing a fire escape, or blocking fire exits, such as installing vertical iron bars or chicken wire over first floor windows that prevent occupants from safe exit, they can be subject to reckless endangerment of life or even negligent homicide, commonly known as involuntary manslaughter.

When Are Property Owners Liable for Fires?

Property owners whose violation of building and fire codes contributes to a fire and any resulting injuries or death may also be sued and held legally responsible for personal injury and money damages under New Jersey’s civil justice system administered by the Superior Court of New Jersey.   Those injured by fire or who suffered smoke inhalation must prove that the defendant in a civil lawsuit was negligent and that their negligence contributed to death or injury.  The plaintiff, or the injured party suing, must prove that the defendant, typically the property owner, had a duty of care to obey safety and fire prevention laws. Despite this, they still breached the duty of care, which proximately caused harm or injury to the plaintiff.

Unlike a criminal prosecution, where the burden of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt, in a civil trial, the standard of proof is by a preponderance of evidence.  In simple terms, a preponderance of evidence requires a litigant to prove their theory of their case and the supporting facts as “more likely than not” a contributing cause. For example, if evidence proves that the removal of smoke detectors “more likely than not” prevented the fire alarm from warning occupants, then the burden of proof has been met for a jury to award money damages.  These damages include all of the injured person’s harms and losses suffered by the injured plaintiff for their pain, suffering, burn scars, and disfigurement, as well as their economic losses.

Common Types of Negligence Resulting in Fires

In a recent news article regarding a recent fire in an apartment building on Summit Avenue in Jersey City that caused a death and injury to others, the article reported that “The fire is under investigation by the Hudson County Regional Arson Task Force and the Jersey City Fire Department, the office said. Foul play is not suspected at this time.”  Their results may conclude that no crime has been committed, however, the determination by law enforcement and the prosecutor does not necessarily rule out ordinary negligence.  Some examples of negligence resulting in fires and injury are:

• Electrical Malfunction
• Broken Appliances
• Defective Power Cords
• Malfunctioning of Fire Warning or Containment Systems
• Negligent Use of Space Heaters
• Failure to Maintain Smoke Detector Batteries and Fire Alarms
• Improper Storage of Flammable Materials
• Blocked Fire Exits
• Ignoring Building Codes
• Negligent Candle Use or Open Flames
• Overloaded Electrical Outlets
• Failure to address Known Fire Hazards
• Automobile Defects in Gas Tanks, Fuel, Battery, and Crashworthiness.
• Chemical Explosions

Even though a prosecutor will close their investigation, there will be additional questions that need to be answered.  That does not rule out their right of a fire victim or their family to hire a personal injury lawyer experienced with fire and explosion cases to investigate and sue those responsible.  A personal injury lawyer who is an expert in fire injury cases will usually immediately hire a cause and origin expert and will take action to preserve as much evidence as possible.  Reputable and experienced law firms will investigate the facts to determine if you have a case and will generally accept your case on a contingent fee basis, meaning the lawyer and their firm will only get paid if a settlement is won.

Our Attorneys’ Experience Handling Fire and Explosion Cases

The New Jersey and New York personal injury law firm of Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. has over 30 years of experience in investigating and winning fire and explosion cases caused by the negligence of others.  They have successfully sued:

• Property Owners
• Landlords and Tenants
• Slum Lords
• Contractors or Maintenance Companies
• Manufacturers of Defective Products
• Utility Companies such as PSE&G
• Property Management Companies
• Contractors or Renovators
• Insurance Companies that denied a claim in bad faith
• Gas or Electric Automobile Manufacturers

Here are some examples of explosions or fire case results that caused burn injuries won by the partners at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C.

• A gas tank of a passenger car exploded after it was struck in the rear by a car, causing death to the passenger, which resulted in a product liability lawsuit against the manufacturer for a gas tank design defect.
• A bank was held responsible when it collected rent and took over a property in foreclosure, and failed to maintain smoke detectors and failed to provide heat to its tenants, who relied upon their oven to provide heat, which ignited a fire that injured and scared two children. The lawsuit resulted in a structured settlement of $28 million in periodic payments over time.
• An inner-city apartment building owner installed chicken wire and bars over the first-floor windows of an apartment house that prevented a safe exit from an apartment, resulting in a death. The result was more than a million-dollar insurance settlement.
• Installation of a double cylinder deadbolt lock on an entry door that required a key to open either side of the door, preventing a safe exit when a brittle Christmas tree erupted in fire due to an electrical wire short, resulting in a confidential settlement.
• An electrician was seriously injured on the job when instructed to remove a protective shroud from a live service electrical panel, which caused an explosion, resulting in a settlement of $28 million.
• Two sisters who survived a deadly house fire. The fire was allegedly started near a thirty-year-old space heater used to heat the apartment being rented by the family. At the time of the fire, the sisters were six and eight years old. The case settled out of court for $8,000,000.
• Death caused by smoke inhalation resulting in an out-of-court settlement.
• Chemical burns from acetone resulted in a $450,000 settlement.
• Defective pressure cooker explosion results in $450,000 settlement

Attorneys Sam Davis and Marc Saperstein have developed legal expertise in proving the cause and origin of fire.  They are also experts in proving past, present, and future losses presented by ongoing complex medical care and wound treatment, including scar revision surgery.  As lawyers, they have successfully proven negligence against property owners and manufacturers and can be reached for a free and confidential consultation at  1-800-529-2000 or by e-mail at sam@dsslaw.com or marc@dsslaw.com.