Judge in Columbia arson trial erupts during cross examination

The judge in the trial of a Columbia man accused in an arson-for-hire plot erupted in frustration during cross-examination of a witness by the defense attorney Friday.

Judge Steven Ohmer, a visiting judge from St. Louis, is conducting the trial in Boone County. Ohmer scolded Mehrdad Fotoohighiam’s lawyer, Scott Rosenblum, after he played a recording that included 15 minutes of engine noise.

Fotoohighiam is charged with first-degree arson, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder, but his trial this week is only on the arson charge.

He is accused of paying an employee $500 in December 2014 to set fire to Marcia Green’s home. A jury acquitted the employee, James Hall, in July 2018. Green was awarded more than $2.75 million in a civil case last September for her injuries and damage to her property.

Philip Groenweghe, a special prosecutor called in from St. Charles County, called Louis Spano to the stand. Spano recorded multiple conversations with Fotoohighiam regarding fake letters. Groenweghe played parts of those recordings for the jury.

During the cross-examination, Rosenblum attempted to play the full recording. The recording played for about 15 minutes. No voices were heard, only loud engines revving and running.

Ohmer stopped the recording and dismissed the jury for lunch. Once the jury left, he raised his voice, asking why the defense was playing the tape, saying there was “not an iota of content.”

Ohmer said he wasn’t trying to tell the defense how to try the case, but that this was a “waste of the jurors’ time.”

During his testimony, Spano said he met Fotoohighiam while they shared a pod in the Boone County Jail.

Once Fotoohighiam posted bail, he hired Spano as a sales representative for his business. That is when Spano claims Fotoohighiam asked him to get Jennifer Wilson, a woman who was staying with James Hall at the time of the fire, to sign fake letters to give to the Boone County prosecuting attorney.

Spano also claims that the defendant asked him to pay off James Hall, giving him a note while they were both in the Boone County Jail. He said he did not pay Hall.

The cross-examination continued after the break, with Rosenblum continuing to attack the credibility of the witness.

The trial is expected to last into next week.