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Tennessee Lesbians Sue Over Alleged Arson

02/04/11-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
A lesbian couple in Vonore, Tennessee have sued their former neighbor who they believe spray-painted an homophobic slur on their detached garage and then set fire to their home. Carol Ann and Laura Stutte are still paying insurance and the mortgage on the destroyed home as well as the home they are renting right now and their living expenses.

According to the Daily Times:

The senior investigator with the American National Property & Casualty Company, Stacy Jennings, said Thursday she could not comment on the situation.

The couple’s lawyer Margaret Held said that the insurance company should be reimbursing her clients for living expenses while the investigation is pending.

“It is not abnormal when you have a fire claim for the insurance company to take this long to investigate,” she said. “What is weird is that the insurance company isn’t paying reimbursement.”

Monroe County Sheriff’s department and fire investigators were suppose to be looking into this as an arson case, but they have not been willing to update this at all. The Stuttes were out of town when their house burned down. The suit alleged that Janice Millsaps is the arsonist, as well, as alleging that she is responsible for tresspasing, malicious harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Stacie Bohanan, the public affairs specialist with the FBI’s Knoxville office, would not confirm or deny that there is an investigation going on at their level.

The news report goes on:

Lawsuit seeks $880,000

According to the lawsuit, the couple bought the Vonore home in June 2005 for $149,000 and invested money in improving the home. At the time of the fire the property was insured for $206,000 and the Stuttes also insured their personal property, most of which was located in the home, for $154,000.

The lawsuit also states that Millsaps threatened the couple, often sneaking onto their property to remark how she could kill them right then and they wouldn’t have a chance to defend themselves.

The story also states:

The suit states that Millsaps threatened their lives making statements such as “there’s bodies in these hills that no one will ever find.”

She also allegedly made statements that she had friends on the police force who would ensure she was never caught if she killed the couple and that the community “takes care of things the old-fashioned way, the Millsaps way.”

When the couple’s home was burned, someone also spray-painted the word “queers” on the Stuttes’ detached garage.

The lawsuit alleges that a month before the fire, Millsaps asked the couple, “Do you know what is better than one dead queer? Two dead queers.”

The suit also demands that Millsaps stay far away from them and their daughter.