Health Again Delays Sentencing of Wheelchair-Bound Arsonist

A heart condition has once again delayed the scheduled sentencing of a wheelchair-bound arsonist who has also admitted robbing a bank.

William Hart, 76, has a heart ailment and was in the hospital Tuesday morning, according to defense attorney Allen Cazares.

“Every time he comes up for sentencing, he has heart problems,” said Municipal Judge Frank A. Brown, who accepted Hart’s guilty plea Feb. 7.

Hart set fire to his room in the downtown Maryland Hotel on Jan. 8, reportedly after he received an eviction notice.

According to a plea-bargain agreement, Hart will receive a maximum sentence of three years in prison. But Cazares said he will ask for probation because his client has credit for more than six months of custody.

Hart also has admitted robbing $70 from HomeFed Bank’s headquarters branch Jan. 15, 1991. He said he needed the money to pay for expensive prescription drugs.

Federal officials deferred prosecuting Hart, telling him that charges would be dropped if he stayed out of trouble for one year. Hart was two weeks away from meeting the government’s demand.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Joseph P. Brannigan said he has not made a decision either way on prosecuting Hart. “His health and his age have something to do with it,” Brannigan said.