A man pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to kill his girlfriend and setting fire to their apartment at The Galleria Apartment complex on 60^th Avenue, on Monday night.

Marcus Deondrae Savage-Dewitt, 22, pleaded not guilty to two counts of attempted first-degree murder and a separate count of arson of an occupied structure, according to superior court documents.

Police records state the fire at The Galleria Apartment complex was a result of arson. Savage-Dewitt told police that he wasn’t on the property when the blaze began. However, his explanation of the evening’s events doesn’t fully match his girlfriend Chelsea Maria Griffin’s account to police.

The following information on the sequence of events comes from Glendale Police Department documents.

On the night of the fire, Savage-Dewitt told Griffin he was going to take a shower. So, she headed to bed. Griffin claims she fell asleep and awoke to flames in her room. Hearing the shower still running, she tried to alert Savage-Dewitt. However, Griffin didn’t hear him respond. She tried to open the bathroom door but it was locked.

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This was a radio wrap done for my graduate broadcast class in Fall 2015.

The Phoenix Historical Preservation Commission announced during Wednesday’s meeting they are seeking help from private businesses to save the 1938 Works Progress Administration building on the State Fair grounds.

The plan distributed federal funds to put Arizonans back to work after the Great Depression.

Kathryn Leonard, an archeologist serving as a historian to the commission, said the building is currently vacant.

“It’s in pretty poor condition and it is not able to be occupied. But it has been used in the last five years, mainly for storage,” Leonard stated.

During the meeting, committee members said they have met with state officials from the governor’s office to find a solution and save the building. The commission wants to show private businesses investing in the building is mutually beneficial to the business and the community. Companies will have the opportunity to increase profits due to the fair’s location and the state and city can preserve a part of Arizona’s history.

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