2010 East Texas church burnings

Series of arson attacks in Texas, USA February 2025 In January and February 2010, 10 churches were burned in East Texas.http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/11/texas.church.fires/ Two latest Texas church fires ruled arson February 11, 2010 Turner Broadcasting System Cable News Network 13 February 2010 Two local men, Jason Bourque and Daniel McAllister, were arrested and pleaded guilty. Bourque was sentenced to life and 20 years in prison, and McAllister received a life sentence. Timeline January 1 – Little Hope Baptist Church, Canton – ruled accident until investigation, later ruled arson January 1 – Faith Church, Athens – ruled arson http://www.athensreview.com/local/x1071713302/Rewards-related-to-church-fires Rewards related to church fires Flowers Rich January 29, 2010 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc Athens Review 13 February 2010 January 12 – Lake Athens Baptist Church – burned January 12 – Grace Community Church, Athens – burned January 16 – Tyland Baptist Church in Tyler – torched January 17 – First Church of Christ, Scientist in Tyler – burned to the ground January 20 – Prairie Creek Fellowship of Lindale on Highway 69 – arson February 4 – Russell Memorial United Methodist Church in Wills Point (Van Zandt County) – destroyed the sanctuary (ATF soon confirmed the fire was the result of arson) 8:30 PM on February 8 – Dover Baptist Church on Highway 110 outside Lindale – mostly destroyed 9:30 on February 8 – Clear Spring Missionary Baptist Church, on CR 426 near the Smith-Van Zandt county line – found burning http://www.kltv.com/global/story.asp?s=11954482&hpt=T2 UPDATE: Communities on alert after 2 more churches burn Livingston Layron February 10, 2010 KLTV 13 February 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20100212043632/http://www.kltv.com/global/story.asp?s=11954482&hpt=T2 12 February 2010 dead Suspects A sketch was released of three persons of interest.http://www.news8austin.com/content/your_news/default.asp?ArID=266664 3 persons of interest in Texas church fires Staff News 8 Austin February 12, 2010 TWEAN News Channel of Austin News 8 Austin 13 February 2010August 2026 InternetArchiveBot On February 21, 2010, Jason Robert Bourque, 19, of Lindale, and Daniel George McAllister, 21, of Ben Wheeler were charged in connection with the Dover Baptist Church burning that occurred on February 8. Their bond was set at $10 million. As they targeted places of worship, the crime is a first-degree felony carrying a maximum penalty of 99 years to life.2 Men Charged in Texas Church Fire by Derrick Henry for The New York Times, published February 21, 2010; retrieved 6 November 2011. Bourque was raised by his devout Christian maternal grandparents, while McAllister was homeschooled for religious reasons. Per The New York Times both men started to question their faith. Bourque's is attributed to his dropping-out from the University of Texas, and McAllister's after the death of his mother and trouble finding work.https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/us/02church.html The New York Times James C. McKinley Jr From Churchgoer to Charges as Church Burner March 1, 2010 Faced with large amounts of evidence, both men pleaded guilty. On January 14, 2011, Judge Christi Kennedy sentenced Bourque to life and 20 years in prison, and McAllister to a life sentence.Lomax John Nova http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2011/01/jason_bourque_and_daniel_mcall.php Jason Bourque and Daniel McAllister: East Texas Church Arsonists Sentenced to Life | Houston Press Hair Balls blogs.houstonpress.com 24 October 2014 October 14, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20131014230027/http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2011/01/jason_bourque_and_daniel_mcall.php dead On February 11, 2011, Bourque was interviewed by KLTV 7 from Smith County Jail. He blamed the drug Chantix, which he used to aid his quitting smoking, for psychotic episodes. He also claimed that McAllister had led the wave, targeting churches as he found them corrupt. Bourque stated that God had forgiven him.http://m.kltv.com/#!/newsDetail/14029101 KLTV m.kltv.com 24 October 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140729215034/http://m.kltv.com/#!/newsDetail/14029101 29 July 2014 dead Cultural legacy Theo Love's documentary, Little Hope Was Arson, interviews community members in East Texas reacting to the burning of the 10 churches.https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2549138/ Little Hope Was Arson imdb.com 15 May 2015http://littlehopewasarson.com Little Hope Was Arson littlehopewasarson.com 15 May 2015 See also Church arson References Category:2010 fires in the United States Category:2010 in Texas Category:Church arson in the United States Category:Anti-Christian sentiment in the United States Category:Arson in Texas Category:Attacks in the United States in 2010 Category:January 2010 crimes in the United States Category:February 2010 crimes in the United States Category:Van Zandt County, Texas Category:Henderson County, Texas Category:Tyler, Texas Category:Smith County, Texas Category:2010s crimes in Texas Category:Arson in 2010 Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in Texas Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2010 Category:2010 in Christianity