Oregon man faces felony assault after Douglas woman burned in acetone fire

Bail of $50,000 cash was set for an Oregon man accused of setting his girlfriend on fire with a cigarette lighter. The victim was the same woman that Brian Hogan, 32, of Hillsboro, was forbidden from contacting after an earlier arrest for assault.

Hogan was not required to enter a plea on the latest charge of assault during a first felony appearance in Juneau District Court on Wednesday.

Police and firefighters Tuesday evening responded to a Douglas address and found a 32-year-old woman who suffered burns on half of her body. Portions of her upper legs, an arm, and her torso were burned. The severity of those injuries was not immediately disclosed, but the woman was medevaced to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

“We’re very concerned about her,” says Juneau Police Lt. Kris Sell.

Sell says the fire appeared to have started with fingernail polish remover or acetone ignited by a cigarette lighter used by Hogan.

“It’s a very grim injury, very painful with extremely long healing when you have a bad burn,” Sell says. “Most of us have had some level of burns and you know how painful it is.”

Sell says the woman dropped to the floor to extinguish the fire and Hogan tried to help put it out. Hogan was at the scene when first responders arrived and he traveled to the hospital with the victim. He was arrested after he was transported to the police station.

Sell says the felony charge of first degree assault does not require intentional conduct. It could also include reckless conduct that causes a serious physical injury.

“I don’t think I could call this an accident by any stretch,” Sell says. “There is a level of recklessness that a reasonable person could predict what was going to happen next. When someone engages in that behavior, I wouldn’t call it an accident.”

Sell says she could not divulge many details about the incident, but there was no alcohol involved. There was legal in-home use of marijuana prior to the incident and a small pipe was found at the scene, but Sell says Hogan was not noticeably impaired.

District Attorney James Scott says Hogan, who has a history of domestic violence under another name, comes to Juneau to wash windows.

Police say Hogan was arrested May 26 for an alleged assault of the same woman and charged with a misdemeanor. He was ordered not to see the victim if he was ever released from jail. Electronic court records indicate that a fellow window washer posted $5,000 cash bail on May 27.

If convicted of the latest felony assault charge, Hogan could serve up to 20 years in prison. In addition, Hogan faces two misdemeanor charges of violating conditions of release, and one misdemeanor for unlawful contact. If convicted, Hogan could spend three months to a year in prison for each of those charges.

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