A Volunteer firefighter has been sentenced to a year-long home detention order for deliberately lighting fires in Tasmania’s north that he later helped fight.
Louis George Taylor-Lawdorn was convicted of arson and burglary for incidents carried out across Rossarden in 2021.
During a recent appearance at the Supreme Court in Burnie, the court heard how Taylor-Lawdorn set fire to multiple buildings and later lit a blaze at an unoccupied factory on October 21, 2021.
Less than a month later, he lit another fire at a property near the caravan he was living in with his mother.
During sentencing, Justice Tamara Jago said Taylor-Lawdorn told his mum to call triple zero shortly after lighting the fire and while she did this, he changed into his Tasmania Fire Service uniform to assist in extinguishing the blaze.
Despite his troubled upbringing and mental health difficulties, the court heard how he had sought help for his issues and was now in a supportive relationship and working.
Justice Jago acknowledged his dysfunctional family background, including undiagnosed ADHD, which may have contributed to his desire to light fires.
An assessment from a psychiatrist presented to the court also revealed Taylor-Lawdorn had been admitted to psychiatric units in the past due to urges relating to fire-lighting.
