Boy sets fire for revenge against Grandma (who grounded him for pranking 911)...

[Maddy McCall]

A 5-year-old was critically injured in a Brooklyn fire he set Monday as revenge for being punished by his grandmother, police and fire sources said.

Jay (Tito) Morales suffered third-degree burns to 70% of his body after he used a lighter to ignite the curtains in Nancy Herrera's Bushwick home, fire sources said. Herrera, 63, suffered minor injuries.

"It's all about revenge," a source said. "What's scary is he thought of this and he is only 5."

The boy twice prank-called 911 recently and told cops his grandmother was dead or in trouble, sources said. To punish the boy, Herrera forbade him from going to the park Monday with two friends.

As the friends left the house, Jay whispered to a 9-year-old, "I'm going burn this house down and kill grandma," a source said. Smoke detectors alerted Herrera to the blaze, but the heat prevented her from reaching the boy, who was in a front bedroom.
.....
He clung to life last night, as his inconsolable mother and family stood by. "He's a beautiful kid," said his uncle Rudy Morales, 47. "The baby played with matches. ... He tried to play with matches before."

MORE: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2008/07/07/2008-07-07_kid_critical_after_setting_brooklyn_fire.html

[LWolf]

1. Something about this just doesn't feel right.

First of all, that picture. Does that kid look like a 5 yo? His grandma might be really short, I guess, without another adult in the picture to provide a reference.

Secondly, who sends their 5 yo to the park with "friends," unsupervised (unless the "friends" were old enough?)

If a 5yo is sophisticated enough to make repeated crank calls to 911, is anyone taking a look at how that kind of mindset developed? That, and the threats to burn the place down if he didn't get his way...indicates a need for counseling to me. While I know that not all kids who exhibit troublesome patterns get the help they need, wouldn't you think that you'd make sure a kid who threatened to burn the place down was 1. supervised, and 2. did not have access to matches, lighters, etc.?

The "baby" played with matches? Before? Is he a baby, or what? Babies don't make crank calls and threaten to burn the place down.

What is wrong with this picture?

[Maddy McCall]

4. Yeah, that's why I posted it...it gave me an ooky feeling.

Evidently he's a big five year old. And I agree, counseling is in order--sounds like the whole family could use some.

(Grandmother did the right thing, to ground him, after he called 911.)

[slackmaster]

2. If I lived in a place called "Bushwick", I'd move

:argh:

[Donnachaidh]

3. uhh, sure he shouldn't have been named Damien?

"I always thought he was joking. I guess he did it this time."

WHAT parent thinks a child is joking when they threaten to burn down a house? And allowing a 5 year old to go to the park with friends? HELLO?

[carlyhippy]

5. That kid needs some sort of counseling when he is all healed up

hopefully he pulls thru and gets better but something ain't right, that is not a typical 5-year-old mind, and if he ends up badly scarred, which unfortunately will probably happen, he will need even more conseling. I really feel for his family.
Carly

[Iggo]

6. This ain't "playing with matches."

This, according to what little I read, was attempted premeditated murder. "I'm going to burn this house down and kill Grandma." That ain't no accident, kiddies.

I realize he's 5, and the punishment is different for babies. But lets's call it what it is. Arson and Attempted Murder.

Playing with matches....pffft!