Woman may have to pay for Winthrop hotel fires
But the attorney representing Nannette K. Lohr, 36, says it's doubtful she could ever pay full restitution for the damage to the Riverside Lodge and Hotel Rio Vista.
Lohr has been in jail for much of the time since the May 24 fire and doesn't know whether she will have a job once she is released. Though early estimates of damage to both hotels are about $1.5 million, the amount of restitution — if any — has yet to be determined by the court.
Lohr, who maintains the fire was accidental, pleaded guilty last week to first-degree reckless burning. In exchange for her guilty plea, a third-degree assault charge against Lohr — the result of a struggle between Lohr and an arresting officer — was dropped.
Lohr could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine on the reckless-burning charge when she is sentenced Aug. 15. Okanogan County Prosecuting Attorney Rick Weber said he has recommended a sentence of 60 days, including time served.
When it comes to the issue of restitution, however, he said he will ask the judge to order Lohr to pay the full amount. Weber said he expects a restitution hearing to be set for sometime next month.
"It's not the first time we've dealt with a case with a large amount of restitution and a limited ability to pay," Weber said. "It happens a lot."
The amount of restitution rests on a number of factors, which could include market value, replacement value or cost of the properties, Weber said.
"I don't know how much it's going to be," he said. "Suffice it to say, this was two motels in a tourist town, on the river, and so the property is probably pretty valuable."
Lohr's attorney, Robert Van Siclen of Seattle, says Lohr should not be held solely responsible for the damage the fire caused.
"If those old buildings had had sprinkler systems or at least a fire extinguisher in the room, the buildings wouldn't have gone down," Van Siclen said. "It isn't just entirely her fault."
Having to pay full restitution would be a hardship for Lohr, who most recently worked as a coffee clerk at a Mercer Island Albertson's supermarket, her attorney said.
"This woman makes very little more than minimum wage," Van Siclen said.
Lohr said she drove to Winthrop May 24 to get away for the weekend after quarreling with her boyfriend. She checked into the nine-room Riverside Lodge, where she says she lighted a candle by her bed, stepped out to the bathroom across the hall and returned to find the bed on fire.
Some witnesses said she smelled of alcohol. Lohr said she had had a glass of wine in the hot tub before visiting the bathroom. She was initially charged with third-degree assault for kicking a police officer in the knee outside the hotel.
A report on the blaze by the Okanogan County Fire Marshal's Office indicated no accelerants were used to fuel the fire. Early reports speculated that the fire may have spread quickly because of some type of accelerant.
Winthrop Mayor Sue Langdalen said both hotels would be rebuilt.
Lohr was released on $5,000 bail 11 days after the fire. But she was arrested again a short time later for violating terms of her release after she drank beer at her boyfriend's house in Everett.
Pam Sitt: 206-464-2376 or psitt@seattletimes.com.