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<h5 class="details" style="float:right">June 15, 2012</h5>
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<h1><font size="6">Shock player says God told him to start fire</font></h1>
<h5 class="subhead">Arson charge follows leap from window</h5>
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<a href="http://www.spokesman.com/staff/nina-culver/">Nina Culver</a>, <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/staff/meghann-cuniff/">Meghann M. Cuniff</a> and <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/staff/jim-meehan/">Jim Meehan</a><br>
Jim Meehan And Meghann M. Cuniff
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<span style="margin-right:3px">Tags:</span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/arson">Arson</a></span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/big-trout-lodge">Big Trout Lodge</a></span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/kevin-ellison">Kevin Ellison</a></span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/liberty-lake">Liberty Lake</a></span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/spokane-shock">Spokane Shock</a></span><span><a href="http://www.spokesman.com/tags/spokane-valley-fire-department">Spokane Valley Fire Department</a></span><div class="grid-3 story-embed">
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<p>A pro football player who leapt from his burning third-floor
apartment in Liberty Lake Thursday said he started the blaze with a
marijuana blunt because God told him to, authorities say.</p>
<p>Kevin Marcus Ellison, 25, a starting linebacker/defensive back for
the Spokane Shock arena football team, initially told firefighters that
he’d been smoking in bed, but evidence collected at the scene didn’t
match that explanation, said Spokane Valley Fire Marshal Kevin Miller.
Ellison was arrested during a follow-up interview at Deaconess Medical
Center where he was being treated for smoke inhalation.</p>
<p>“We were looking for smoking materials,” Miller said. “We ruled out any accidental cause.”</p>
<p>No other injuries were reported in the blaze, which Miller said was
spotted about 5:30 a.m. by firefighters headed to an unrelated emergency
call. The fire crew radioed for reinforcement and diverted to the
massive Big Trout Lodge apartment complex, where they found flames
coming from the third-story unit. Liberty Lake police officers helped
evacuate the complex.</p>
<p>According to court documents, Ellison was at the hospital when he
told Spokane Valley Deputy Fire Marshal Clifton Mehaffey that he’d set
the fire with a cigar “because ‘God’ had told him to set the bed on
fire.” Mehaffey said Ellison stopped talking to him after he called a
family member and was advised to get a lawyer.</p>
<p> Later Thursday, a federal agent with the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives contacted Shock general manager Ryan
Rigmaiden, who said Ellison told him he started the fire with a
marijuana blunt at the advice of God, according to court documents.</p>
<p>The agent then contacted Ellison, who declined to answer questions
about the fire but said “that he just wanted to get out of it and for it
all to go away,” according to documents filed in U.S. District Court. </p>
<p>Ellison faces a federal arson charge, which Miller said is standard when an arson fire is in a large apartment complex.</p>
<p>Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze before flames could
spread, but two neighboring units sustained smoke damage, authorities
said. Damage is estimated at $50,000, according to court documents.</p>
<p>Ellison’s roommate, Shock teammate Chris Tucker, was awakened by
smoke detectors and tried to check on Ellison in the bedroom
before fleeing.</p>
<p>He told investigators he knocked on Ellison’s door and Ellison said
“I’m good” but did not open the door. Tucker left the apartment and
notified other tenants.</p>
<p> “He pounded on the door and it was too hot,” Miller said, adding that Tucker later found Ellison outside.</p>
<p>Shock majority owner Brady Nelson said the 6-foot-1, 225-pound
Ellison was suspended by the league Thursday following the arrest. “I
think the investigation needs to play out, but if he truly did this he’s
never coming back,” Nelson said.</p>
<p>Ellison moved into the starting lineup last month when Terence Moore
went on injured reserve with a knee injury. Ellison played in the
defensive secondary in last week’s game against Kansas City. Moore has
recovered from his injury and will return to the starting lineup
this week.</p>
<p>“He’s been a model player,” Nelson said of Ellison, noting he’d been
scheduled to participate in a television interview later
Thursday morning. </p>
<p>Ellison, who played at USC, was drafted in the sixth round by the
San Diego Chargers in 2009 and started nine games at safety that season.
He was released by the team following a May 2010 arrest in San Diego on
a controlled-substance charge after police reportedly found 100 Vicodin
tablets in his vehicle without a prescription.</p>
<p>The charges were later dropped. Ellison joined the Seattle Seahawks but was released shortly before the 2010 season opener.</p>
<p>U.S. Magistrate Cynthia Imbrogno ordered Ellison to remain in
federal custody Thursday. A hearing to determine whether he should be
allowed to leave jail on bail to await trial is scheduled for June 19.</p>
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