Guilty Verdict In Deadly Fire Handed Down To Edgewood Woman

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — A Harford County jury has found a 63-year-old Edgewood woman guilty of multiple charges in the deaths of four people in a 2019 townhome fire.

Bobbie Sue Hodge was convicted of arson in the first degree, four counts of felony murder and three counts of assault in the second degree, according to a news release from prosecutors.

Hodge now faces a maximum penalty of four life sentences plus 60 years for a fatal fire that happened May 9, 2019, at 1862 Simons Court in Edgewood.

According to the state's attorney for Harford County, Ernest Lee, who lived on the third floor of the townhouse on Simons Court, called 911 to report a fire shortly before 2:30 a.m. May 9, 2019. Members of the Joppa-Magnolia Volunteer Fire Department were the first to respond and found the third floor completely engulfed in flames.

Ernest Lee, Dionne Hill and Kimberly Shupe, who were on the third floor, died in the fire. Another third-floor occupant was able to escape the fire by jumping out of his third floor bedroom window. He suffered a broken ankle and arm.

Hodge and two other residents who were in the basement were able to escape the fire. Mary Elizabeth Kennedy, who was living on the second floor, was rescued by firefighters and taken to an area hospital for treatment, but she died from her injuries on Jan. 22, 2020. Nine people were living in the house at the time of the blaze, and officials said eight people were home when the fire broke out.

After interviewing numerous witnesses, including the occupants of the house, neighbors and Hodge, reviewing 911 calls and consulting with experts at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosions, Hodge was arrested for arson and murder. The jury trial started Oct. 5 and a verdict was reached Oct. 24.

“This tragedy shocked our Harford County community,” said Albert J. Peisinger Jr., state's attorney for Harford County. “It is my hope that this verdict is a first step towards healing for the surviving victims and the families of those who lost loved ones.”

The Abingdon Volunteer Fire Department, Bel Air Volunteer Fire Department, Aberdeen Proving Ground Fire Department and Baltimore County-Kingsville Volunteer Fire Department also were on the scene.

According to Maryland State Fire Marshal Brian Geraci, the townhouse was operating as an "illegal group home." He described it as a lodging and rooming house, based on the number of people living there.

To be in compliance with Maryland code, Geraci told Patch that the townhouse needed a complete residential complete sprinkler system, fire alarm and smoke alarms through the house, including in the sleeping areas.

"If a sprinkler system was in place, these folks would not have lost their lives," Geraci said.