arson (redirected from incendiarism)

arson, at common law, the malicious and willful burning of the house of another. Originally, it was an offense against the security of habitation rather than against property rights. Thus, a tenant could not be convicted of arson for burning the house that he rented from his landlord. Although this rule still holds in some states of the United States, in many others statutes have changed the meaning of the offense. Its application has been extended to buildings, structures, and vehicles that are not dwelling places, and greater stress has been placed on protection of property rights. Some statutes distinguish several degrees of arson, e.g., arson committed at night is considered more serious than arson committed in the daytime. In most states setting fire to one's own property to defraud an insurance company is specified as arson.

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arson

Crime commonly defined by statute as the unlawful damage or destruction of property by means of fire or explosion. In nearly all countries (except Great Britain) an arsonist is guilty of murder if someone dies as a result of his action, even if he did not intend to kill. Germany and some U.S. states also impose serious penalties for arson when it is committed to conceal or destroy evidence of another crime. Although fire caused by accident or ordinary carelessness is not arson, a person may be guilty of arson if he causes a fire in reckless disregard of the consequences of his actions.