Bellefonte man pleads guilty after 2023 fire significantly damaged a home, destroyed an SUV
A Bellefonte man accused of intentionally setting fire to his childhood home in an attempt to kill a woman inside pleaded guilty Tuesday to felony counts of arson and attempted aggravated assault.
Matthew J. Davis, 38, faces more than a decade in state prison for the July 2023 fire that destroyed an SUV and significantly damaged the home along the 200 block of Vanessa Drive in Spring Township.
Centre County prosecutors will recommend Davis be sentenced to 20 to 40 years in state prison, while Centre County Assistant Public Defender Rebecca Bain said she will argue for 12 1/2 to 30 years in prison.
Davis is to be sentenced May 9 by Centre County Judge Julia Rater. Seven charges were dropped as part of the agreement, including a count of attempted first-degree murder.
Davis told the township police department’s detective he intentionally set the fire by placing a large liquid propane tank in the back of the SUV, opening the valve and then tossing a lit piece of paper into the vehicle.
He also said he knew the vehicle was close enough to catch the house on fire, police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause. The homeowner was treated at Mount Nittany Medical Center for smoke inhalation and a high heart rate.
Davis was arrested in Pleasant Gap less than a mile away from the home. During an interview with the detective, Davis said he associated the home with abuse and decided “today was the day everything ended.”
He previously threatened to set fire to the home in 2012 and also spoke with fellow inmates in 2007 about hiring someone to kill the homeowner, police wrote.
Bain wrote in court documents that she believes Davis has a mental illness that prevents him from knowing “right from wrong and from appreciating the nature and consequences of his actions.” She also asked that Davis receive a psychological evaluation because of past trauma.
He has been denied bail and is incarcerated at the Centre County Correctional Facility.
This story was originally published March 25, 2025 at 11:18 AM.