ATF Investigation Leads to 80+ Year Sentence for Pierce County Arsonist
SEATTLE — A reinvestigation of a fatal New Year’s Eve 2021 Tacoma, Washington, fire by Certified Fire Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Seattle Field Division led to a more than 81-year sentence for a Tacoma serial arsonist.
Sarah Jane Ramey was found guilty of first-degree murder and 14 arson charges on July 3 for a string of fires in the Tacoma area between December 2021 and January 2022, including a Dec. 31, 2021, house fire that killed owner James Elliott. She was also found guilty on burglary, identity theft and theft of a motor vehicle. Ramey, 42, was sentenced in Pierce County Superior Court to 980 months – more than 81 years – on July 23.
In early 2022 ATF reached out to Tacoma Police and Fire Department authorities offering support in investigating the suspicious fires, including the New Year’s Eve fire, which was consequently accepted by the agencies.
Multiple Special Agents, including the Certified Fire Investigators (CFIs), and support staff from the ATF Seattle Field Division, along with two electrical engineers and a fire protection engineer from ATF’s Fire Research Laboratory from Beltsville, Maryland, deployed to Tacoma to begin investigating the fires, in particular the one which killed Elliott.
ATF’s reinvestigation of this fire led to the change in determination of the fire from accidental to incendiary, meaning it was human caused. Investigators eventually traced Ramey to several fires, including Elliott’s home, and she was charged in February 2022.
“This significant sentencing was a direct result of ATF’s training, skill and determination,” said ATF Seattle Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Blais. “Our involvement was directly driven by our agents’ desire to make our communities safer. We have resources that even the largest fire departments don’t have, and we can deploy them to a scene in a very short amount of time. While our actions can’t bring back Mr. Elliott, we hope that the work we did leading to Ms. Ramey’s conviction and sentencing will bring a sense of closure to the family and community.”
Three members of ATF investigate a house fire.
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