James Scott (criminal)
Encyclopedia
James Robert Scott was convicted of causing a massive flood of the Mississippi River
at West Quincy, Missouri
as part of the Great Flood of 1993
. He is currently serving a sentence of 20 years to life
in a Missouri prison.
. By the time he had reached his 20s, he had already racked up an extensive criminal record and served time in six prisons. While most of these arrests were for petty burglary
, they also included two arson
s. In 1982, he burned down his elementary school, Webster Elementary School in Quincy. In 1988, he burned down a garage and set several other fires, netting him a sentence of seven years in prison.
By 1993, Scott was out of prison on parole for the 1988 fire. He worked at a Burger King
in Quincy and spent most of his nights drinking heavily. He lived in the nearby town of Fowler
with his wife Suzie.
, spent much of mid-July reinforcing the West Quincy levee. They got an unexpected assist from nature; by July 16 the river had stopped rising and had actually dropped 1.5 foot (0.4572 m) below the levee. That night, however, the levee unexpectedly failed when the river burst through its main stem. The resulting flood inundated 14000 acres (56.7 km²) on the Missouri side of the river. In one of the more spectacular incidents, a barge was sucked into the levee and slammed into a gas station, causing a fire.
The flood washed out all of the bridges in the area—the only links across the river for 200 miles (321.9 km). While no one was killed, many people on the Missouri side of the river had to drive 80 miles to either St. Louis or Burlington, Iowa
, fly or take a ferry to get across the river for several weeks after the waters receded. One major bridge, the Bayview Bridge
, was out of service for 71 days. Several businesses in West Quincy were also destroyed; that area has never recovered.
A reporter for WGEM-TV
, the NBC
affiliate in Quincy, collared Scott as he was walking the levee. Scott said that he'd seen a weak spot on the levee and tried to put more sandbags along it. He then said he went for a drink, only to come back and discover the levee had let go. He then helped the Coast Guard
load boats into the floodwaters.
Missouri authorities were also suspicious. The levee had failed at one of its strongest points, and that area had been inspected two hours earlier. They got even more suspicious when they found out about Scott's extensive criminal record, including the arsons. Adams County, Illinois
sheriff's deputies questioned him a week after the flood, and he was unable to keep his story straight.
On October 1, Quincy police arrested Scott on an unrelated burglary charge. During questioning, he admitted to pulling four sandbags from one portion of the levee and moving them to the trouble spot he'd claimed to have seen. He told police, "My town was in trouble. The folks in Quincy and in West Quincy were about to lose everything. That’s why I went down to that levee. I had no plans to hurt anything. They needed help, so I helped." While he denied any intent to cause any harm, he said, "I didn't mean to cause a problem but I did... I'm up shit creek." He was released after an hour and a half. However, he was convicted of the burglary in January 1994 and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
. As the story went, Scott wanted to be free to party, fish, and have an affair. Investigators subsequently found other witnesses who said Scott boasted about breaking the levee at a party after the flood. Based on this evidence, Scott was taken to Missouri for trial in November 1994.
Scott was tried under a 1979 Missouri law that made it a crime to intentionally cause a catastrophe. The law, which is Section 569.070 of the Missouri Revised Statutes, defines a catastrophe as "death or serious physical injury to ten or more people or substantial damage to five or more buildings or inhabitable structures or substantial damage to a vital public facility which seriously impairs its usefulness or operation." Due to heavy publicity, the trial took place in Kirksville
, almost 1.5 hours north of West Quincy.
Prosecutors and investigators believed that Scott either removed or cut the plastic sheets covering the levee, then burrowed through the sand until the water rushed in. The defense rested largely on two soil-science experts who testified that there was strong evidence the levee failed due to natural causes. One of them, David Hammer of the University of Missouri
, said that there had been "something like 11 or 12 levee failures" upriver from West Quincy. The other, Charles Morris of the University of Missouri-Rolla, said that a last-minute decision to bring in bulldozers to shore up the levee actually weakened its structural integrity. However, they were no match for the numerous witnesses who claimed to hear Scott bragging about breaking the levee, as well as the inconsistencies in his story.
After a three-day trial, a jury took just over four hours to convict Scott of causing a catastrophe. A month later, he was sentenced to 10 years to life in prison, to run consecutively with his 10-year burglary sentence in Illinois. There was a good deal of relief in the area, though mixed with some revulsion for what Scott had done.
Scott appealed, and on February 25, 1997 the Missouri Court of Appeals
threw out the conviction due to prosecutorial misconduct
. Prosecutors hadn't told the defense about two witnesses who reportedly heard Scott say he'd deliberately broken the levee. He was retried in 1998. This time, he was convicted after only three hours of deliberation on April 30. The original sentence was reinstated on July 6.
Scott is currently serving his sentence in the Jefferson City Correctional Center. He will not be eligible for parole until 2023. He maintains that he is innocent.
Adam Pitluk, a contributor to Time
, wrote a book, Damned to Eternity (ISBN 0306815273) that argues that Scott is innocent.
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
at West Quincy, Missouri
West Quincy, Missouri
West Quincy is a small commercial area in northeastern Marion County, Missouri, United States, on U.S. Route 24. It has no permanent residents.-History:...
as part of the Great Flood of 1993
Great Flood of 1993
The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 occurred in the American Midwest, along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their tributaries, from April to October 1993. The flood was among the most costly and devastating to ever occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages...
. He is currently serving a sentence of 20 years to life
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
in a Missouri prison.
Early life
Scott grew up in Quincy, IllinoisQuincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...
. By the time he had reached his 20s, he had already racked up an extensive criminal record and served time in six prisons. While most of these arrests were for petty burglary
Burglary
Burglary is a crime, the essence of which is illicit entry into a building for the purposes of committing an offense. Usually that offense will be theft, but most jurisdictions specify others which fall within the ambit of burglary...
, they also included two arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
s. In 1982, he burned down his elementary school, Webster Elementary School in Quincy. In 1988, he burned down a garage and set several other fires, netting him a sentence of seven years in prison.
By 1993, Scott was out of prison on parole for the 1988 fire. He worked at a Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
in Quincy and spent most of his nights drinking heavily. He lived in the nearby town of Fowler
Fowler, Illinois
Fowler is an unincorporated community in Gilmer Township, Adams County, Illinois, USA, and is located near Quincy. It is part of the Quincy, IL–MO Micropolitan Statistical Area. As far as infrastructure is concerned U.S. Route 24 runs right through the center of town as well as the...
with his wife Suzie.
The flood
The Scotts, along with several other residents living in and around Quincy and HannibalHannibal, Missouri
Hannibal is a city in Marion and Ralls counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. Hannibal is located at the intersection of Interstate 72 and U.S. Routes 24, 36 and 61, approximately northwest of St. Louis. According to the 2010 U.S. Census the population was 17,606...
, spent much of mid-July reinforcing the West Quincy levee. They got an unexpected assist from nature; by July 16 the river had stopped rising and had actually dropped 1.5 foot (0.4572 m) below the levee. That night, however, the levee unexpectedly failed when the river burst through its main stem. The resulting flood inundated 14000 acres (56.7 km²) on the Missouri side of the river. In one of the more spectacular incidents, a barge was sucked into the levee and slammed into a gas station, causing a fire.
The flood washed out all of the bridges in the area—the only links across the river for 200 miles (321.9 km). While no one was killed, many people on the Missouri side of the river had to drive 80 miles to either St. Louis or Burlington, Iowa
Burlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,663 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and...
, fly or take a ferry to get across the river for several weeks after the waters receded. One major bridge, the Bayview Bridge
Bayview Bridge
The Bayview Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge bringing westbound U.S. Highway 24 over the Mississippi River. It connects the cities of West Quincy, Missouri and Quincy, Illinois. Eastbound U.S. 24 is served by the older Quincy Memorial Bridge....
, was out of service for 71 days. Several businesses in West Quincy were also destroyed; that area has never recovered.
A reporter for WGEM-TV
WGEM-TV
WGEM-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Tri-States area of Western Illinois, Northeastern Missouri, and extreme Southeastern Iowa that is licensed to Quincy, Illinois. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter east of the city on Cannonball...
, the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate in Quincy, collared Scott as he was walking the levee. Scott said that he'd seen a weak spot on the levee and tried to put more sandbags along it. He then said he went for a drink, only to come back and discover the levee had let go. He then helped the Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
load boats into the floodwaters.
Suspicions mount
Scott's account of the flood sounded suspicious to Neal Baker, a sergeant with the Quincy Police Department. Baker was familiar with Scott; he had arrested Scott for the 1982 and 1988 arsons while he was still a patrolman. For one thing, Baker noticed that Scott looked far too clean to have been working on a levee all day. He also had trouble recalling simple details that anyone who worked on the levee should have known. Baker also noticed that Scott wasn't wearing a life jacket.Missouri authorities were also suspicious. The levee had failed at one of its strongest points, and that area had been inspected two hours earlier. They got even more suspicious when they found out about Scott's extensive criminal record, including the arsons. Adams County, Illinois
Adams County, Illinois
Adams County is the westernmost county of the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 67,103, which is a decrease of 1.7% from 68,277 in 2000...
sheriff's deputies questioned him a week after the flood, and he was unable to keep his story straight.
On October 1, Quincy police arrested Scott on an unrelated burglary charge. During questioning, he admitted to pulling four sandbags from one portion of the levee and moving them to the trouble spot he'd claimed to have seen. He told police, "My town was in trouble. The folks in Quincy and in West Quincy were about to lose everything. That’s why I went down to that levee. I had no plans to hurt anything. They needed help, so I helped." While he denied any intent to cause any harm, he said, "I didn't mean to cause a problem but I did... I'm up shit creek." He was released after an hour and a half. However, he was convicted of the burglary in January 1994 and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Trial
Meanwhile, authorities on both sides of the river teamed up with federal authorities to investigate the case. Their investigation eventually led to Joe Flachs, an old friend of Scott's. Flachs told authorities that Scott had told him he had broken the levee so he could strand his wife, Suzie, on the Missouri side of the river. Suzie worked as a waitress at a truck stop in Taylor, MissouriTaylor, Missouri
Taylor is an unincorporated community in northeastern Marion County, Missouri, United States. It is located at the northern junction of U.S. Routes 24 and 61. It is about five miles west of Quincy, Illinois and eight miles north of Palmyra....
. As the story went, Scott wanted to be free to party, fish, and have an affair. Investigators subsequently found other witnesses who said Scott boasted about breaking the levee at a party after the flood. Based on this evidence, Scott was taken to Missouri for trial in November 1994.
Scott was tried under a 1979 Missouri law that made it a crime to intentionally cause a catastrophe. The law, which is Section 569.070 of the Missouri Revised Statutes, defines a catastrophe as "death or serious physical injury to ten or more people or substantial damage to five or more buildings or inhabitable structures or substantial damage to a vital public facility which seriously impairs its usefulness or operation." Due to heavy publicity, the trial took place in Kirksville
Kirksville, Missouri
Kirksville is the county seat of Adair County, Missouri, United States. It is located in Benton Township. The population was 17,505 at the 2010 census. Kirksville also anchors a micropolitan area that comprises Adair and Schuyler counties. The city is perhaps best known as the location of Truman...
, almost 1.5 hours north of West Quincy.
Prosecutors and investigators believed that Scott either removed or cut the plastic sheets covering the levee, then burrowed through the sand until the water rushed in. The defense rested largely on two soil-science experts who testified that there was strong evidence the levee failed due to natural causes. One of them, David Hammer of the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
, said that there had been "something like 11 or 12 levee failures" upriver from West Quincy. The other, Charles Morris of the University of Missouri-Rolla, said that a last-minute decision to bring in bulldozers to shore up the levee actually weakened its structural integrity. However, they were no match for the numerous witnesses who claimed to hear Scott bragging about breaking the levee, as well as the inconsistencies in his story.
After a three-day trial, a jury took just over four hours to convict Scott of causing a catastrophe. A month later, he was sentenced to 10 years to life in prison, to run consecutively with his 10-year burglary sentence in Illinois. There was a good deal of relief in the area, though mixed with some revulsion for what Scott had done.
Scott appealed, and on February 25, 1997 the Missouri Court of Appeals
Missouri Court of Appeals
The Missouri Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court for the state of Missouri. The court handles most of the appeals from the Missouri Circuit Courts. The court is divided into three districts: Eastern The Missouri Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court for the state...
threw out the conviction due to prosecutorial misconduct
Prosecutorial misconduct
In jurisprudence, prosecutorial misconduct is a procedural defense; via which, a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which may have broken the law, because the prosecution acted in an "inappropriate" or "unfair" manner. Such arguments may involve...
. Prosecutors hadn't told the defense about two witnesses who reportedly heard Scott say he'd deliberately broken the levee. He was retried in 1998. This time, he was convicted after only three hours of deliberation on April 30. The original sentence was reinstated on July 6.
Scott is currently serving his sentence in the Jefferson City Correctional Center. He will not be eligible for parole until 2023. He maintains that he is innocent.
Adam Pitluk, a contributor to Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, wrote a book, Damned to Eternity (ISBN 0306815273) that argues that Scott is innocent.