Addison Acquitted On Arson Counts, Convicted On Charges Of Burglary And Theft

By Alex Haglund

After a jury trial that finished on January 27, Keith Addison, 29, of Nashville, was found not guilty on the charges of arson, related to the fire that occurred at Traveler’s Restaurant on February 9, 2015, but was found guilty of two counts of burglary and one count of theft.

“The felonies for which he was convicted are the same class (Class 2, with potential for a penalty of 3-7 years in prison) as arson,” said Washington County State’s Attorney Heath Hooks, “we just had better evidence on the burglary charges.”

Hooks stated that while he was happy that Judge Gross was willing to take the case against Addison for arson to trial, “there was circumstantial evidence. We were hoping it would win.”

Hooks stated that physical evidence against Addison was not available because the State Fire Marshall declined to have debris from the fire tested, stating in his testimony that due to the fire starting in a garage where accelerants were already present, it would have been fruitless to send it to the lab.

A sentencing hearing for the two class two felony counts of burglary, and one class three count of theft which Addison was convicted of will be held on March 18.