Police officers take photographs of the aftermath of the Sco-Mar fire that occurred June 15, 2009.Calvin HopperA 54-year-old Gaffney man charged with torching the Sco-Mar Textiles Outlet on East Robinson Street last June blames alcohol for the incident.
"I had a long time to think about this and what I done," Calvin Randolph Hopper told Circuit Court Judge Mark Hayes on Tuesday in Cherokee County General Sessions Court. "Consumption of alcohol is the only reason I done this."
Hopper, who had confessed last year to setting the massive blaze that kept city firefighters busy for several days, pleaded guilty before Hayes on Tuesday to a charge of third degree arson.
Hopper faced up to 15 years in prison on the charge and prosecutors recommended he serve at least 12 years.
Following the plea, Judge Hayes accepted the recommendation and sentenced Hopper to 12 years in the state Department of Corrections, with credit for 365 days of time served.
State law regarding arson recently changed and a sentence for third degree arson now allows for parole, it was noted in court. It wasn't immediately clear, however, how much time Hopper would have to serve before he is eligible for parole consideration.
Regardless, Hopper's defense attorney noted in court that the change in the law "brought closure to this" case.
Assistant Solicitor Kim Leskanic, who prosecuted the case, explained in court that the fire broke out on June 15, 2009, at 11:55 p.m. and that firefighters found multiple points of origin.
"This defendant was interviewed several times," she said. "During the last interview he confessed."
Hopper's defense attorney noted in court that Hopper had been doing work for the building owner, Michael Childers, and that the two "apparently had a falling out." After Hopper was let go, the defense attorney said, Hopper went home and started drinking. Hopper allegedly told his attorney, "The more I drank, the madder I got."
The fire leveled the building and it flared up several times, including a full two weeks after firefighters thought it was extinguished. The commercial building was loaded with bales of cloth that were difficult to extinguish.
Hopper was not required to pay any restitution as part of his plea and sentence and it was noted in court that the matter is being handled by insurance.
Apparently because of insurance issues in the case, Hopper was asked by his lawyer to state under oath in court whether anyone else was involved or "put him up" to setting the fire.
Hopper replied that no one else was involved.
"I'm sorry for what I did," he would subsequently tell the judge.