Arsonist given suspended prison sentence for lighting family home on fire
DERRICK PERKINS | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 11 months AGO
Jason Jerald Andreaus Meyer. (Photo courtesy the Flathead County Sheriff's Office)
NEWS EDITOR Derrick Perkins serves as News Editor at the Daily Inter Lake. He oversees daily news coverage and works closely with reporters to plan, edit and publish stories across print and digital platforms. Perkins helps coordinate coverage of local government, public safety, business and community developments throughout Northwest Montana. He works with the reporting staff to strengthen journalism while maintaining consistent daily coverage. His role helps ensure the newsroom delivers timely, accurate reporting that readers rely on. IMPACT: Derrick’s work keeps readers informed about the decisions and events shaping their communities every day. | May 17, 2025 12:00 AM
The man who set his family's Whitefish Stage Road home alight in December 2023 received a suspended prison sentence in April.
Jason Jerald Andreaus Meyer, 25, initially pleaded not guilty to felony arson in Flathead County District Court but struck a deal with the County Attorney's Office in August 2024. In exchange for a guilty plea, prosecutors agreed to recommend a partially suspended sentence.
The terms of the deal allowed Meyer's defense attorney to argue for a fully suspended sentence.
Judge Dan Wilson handed down a 10-year suspended sentence to Meyer on April 24. Wilson gave Meyer credit for 126 days of time served and ordered him to pay $27,442.35 in restitution.
When Flathead County Sheriff's Office deputies arrived at Meyer's family's trailer on Whitefish Stage Road on Dec. 21, 2023, they found the structure engulfed in flames, according to court documents. Meyer told investigators that he set the fire after getting into an argument with a relative earlier in the day, court documents said.
Following the disagreement, he allegedly went into the living room of the home and flicked a cigarette butt onto a pile of clothes dirtied with gas and oil. Then he put a lighter up to a curtain, court documents said.
Watching from his truck, Meyer reentered the home and alerted the other inhabitants after seeing smoke billowing out of a door, court documents said.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or [email protected].
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