Wife to face fatal arson charges in county court

KINGSTON — A woman accused of setting two fires that took the life of her husband failed to call 911 but instead smoked a cigarette and watched her Kingston apartment fill with smoke, a Luzerne County detective testified Wednesday.

Det. James Noone was the last of six witnesses to testify at the preliminary hearing of Lisa Starruick-Smalls, 59, before District Judge James Haggerty on charges of criminal homicide, reckless burning, aggravated arson and three counts of arson.

Noone testified Starruick-Smalls admitted to setting the fires in the early morning hours of Jan. 4 after a night of arguing with her husband, Wilbert K. Smalls, 74.

Starruick-Smalls made the alleged confession during an interview with Noone and Kingston police Det. John D. Anthony.

Noone said Starruick-Smalls claimed she tried to wake up her husband and walked out, at which time she lit a cigarette and did not call 911.

When a neighbor called 911, Starruick-Smalls got on the phone and told the 911 call-taker “her husband was in bed and asleep,” Noone said, noting the 911 call was recorded.

Following the three-hour hearing, Haggerty determined Deputy District Attorney Thomas Hogans and Assistant District Attorney Carl Frank established a case, sending all the charges to county court.

Marshal describes fires

State police Trooper Joe Montagna, a deputy fire marshal, said he determined there were two fires set inside the apartment located on Holiday Drive in the Green Acres complex off Third Avenue.

Montagna said one of the fires involved a pot containing cream of wheat and oil placed on the stove with the burner turned up high; the other fire was started in a bedroom used as an art room. Based on Starruick-Small’s alleged confession, Montagna said toilet paper and a fur coat in a garbage bag were ignited.

Montagna said the art room was two rooms away from the bedroom where Wilbert Smalls was found, but noted the entire apartment was filled with smoke.

When questioned by Starruick-Smalls’ attorneys, Thomas Cometa and Christine Trout, Montagna said he could not determine what was ignited in the art room due to extensive damage.

Cometa suggested a dropped cigarette could have started the fire but Montagna said a lit cigarette would not create enough heat to ignite carpet.

Husband found unresponsive

Kingston-Forty Fort firefighter Erik Derr said he was one of the first firefighters to arrive at the apartment at about 12:40 a.m. When crews learned that a person was trapped inside, Derr conducted a right shoulder search along the walls, crawling on his hands and knees and finding Wilbert Smalls lying on a bedroom floor.

Derr said he pulled an unresponsive Wilbert Smalls from the burning apartment and emergency medical technicians took over life-saving measures. Wilbert Smalls was transported to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Derr said the visibility in the apartment was very poor due to heavy smoke.

County Coroner Jill Matthews said an autopsy by forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross revealed Wilbert Smalls died from smoke inhalation and the manner of death was homicide.

Forty Fort police Officer Tyler Norton said he went to other apartments in the building banging on doors and windows yelling for residents to get out.

Hogans said the fire endangered not only the residents of the apartment building but firefighters.

Starruick-Smalls remains jailed at the county correctional facility without bail.