Webster Mom Who Set House On Fire And Burning Her Children, Escapes Psych Hospital Time

CONCORD, NH — A woman who set her parent’s home in Webster on fire while entrapping her children inside walked out of Merrimack County Superior Court on Monday without jail time or a psychiatric hospital stay after pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.

After hearing one victim witness statement from a father of one of two children burned during the incident, Judge Dan St. Hilaire agreed with both the Merrimack County Attorney’s Office and Mark Sisti, that Mary Elizabeth “Liz” Corliss, 41, should be sentenced to probation on seven counts of arson, child endangerment, second-degree assault-deadly weapon, and reckless conduct in the February 2021 fire. Her children were 9 and 6 at the time.

St. Hilaire walked Corliss through the charges, ensuring she understood the plea and all that it would entail and she was not intoxicated or under the influence of drugs. She denied being under the influence and confirmed she could speak English and understood the instructions and agreement.

Before addressing Corliss’ colloquy, St. Hilaire turned to the prosecution to hear victim statements.

Theresa Harrington, an attorney with the county attorney’s office, introduced Alex McMillen, the father of Corliss’ daughter and a police officer in Portsmouth.

McMillen asked St. Hilaire to reject the deal and spoke about the damage done to his daughter, including deep emotional and physical scars due to being burned in the fire. He said the fire intended to take the lives of the children. McMillen called the incident a “four-year nightmare” that began when he received a phone call from a Boscawen police sergeant notifying him his daughter was being flown to Boston for care due to the fire.

McMillen drove to Boston and beat the helicopter to the hospital. He said his daughter was “black with soot” and her face was “blistered with burns.” There was blood all over the hospital room, he said, and a machine was helping her breathe. The girl’s younger brother was not expected to live but miraculously made it through, he said.

“I would not believe I would ever be able to talk to her again,” he thought of that day, “never hear her laugh or never hear another one of her ‘how come?’ questions.”

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McMillen said the lasting impact on his daughter required St. Hilaire to reconsider the plea deal, calling it a “horrific crime.” He told his daughter’s mother, who showed no remorse during the hearing and offered no apology or penitence, that Molly knew her intentions for her and her brother. She told me she wishes you would have died in that fire, McMillen said.

“Your daughter wishes you died in a fire,” he said. “You showed your own children that you were a monster and they will never forget this.”

McMillen also criticized County Attorney Paul Halvorsen, Harrington, and Sarah Rogers, who is no longer with the office, calling them “a disgrace to the criminal justice system,” saying the county attorney’s office had “disrespected my family and threatened to decertify me as a police officer,” as he tried to fight for justice for his daughter. He said he felt sorry for the victims of Merrimack County.

“Worst of all,” he said, “you failed to provide protection to keep these kids safe. No child should have to live in fear.”

McMillen was also critical of Sisti, saying he lived up to his reputation “as being the attorney guilty people hire … the loudmouth with the wet ponytail … you are the scum of the Earth, and I hope you retire following this.”

McMillen added there had been no consequences for Corliss’ actions and no justice was served even after multiple breaches of her bail.

Many family members wept while McMillen spoke.

The guardian of Corliss’ son was in court but chose not to speak. Concord firefighters involved in putting out the blaze and rescuing the children were in attendance, along with members of the Boscawen Police Department and New Hampshire Fire Marshal’s Office, to support the victims.

Harrington said many jurisdictions were involved in the “large and concerted effort” in Webster that day as well as at Concord Hospital and the Shriner’s burn unit. She said many of the first responders suffered from stress after the incident and were concerned about the health of the children. She said it “vividly stood out” to some of them as one of the worst experiences of their professional lives.

“It was a miracle these two children survived the fire,” Harrington said.

Despite McMillen’s pleas, St. Hilaire ignored them. He called the case old with several other judges and would proceed with the agreement. The evidence, statements at the time of the incident, and viewpoints of the medical professionals involved in analyzing Corliss, presented in a jury trial, would have yielded the same conclusion, St. Hilaire said.

Corliss was given the chance to offer an allocution, but she refused.

The commitment order requires Corliss not to contact the victims, although that could change. St. Hilaire noted that a future family court could modify the provisions. She must adhere to supervision by a New Hampshire Department of Corrections NGRI clinical coordinator and a probation and parole officer. Corrections and the county attorney’s office will have access to her medical records. Corliss is required not to engage in “any assaultive or threatening behavior” and is not allowed to possess firearms, destructive devices, deadly weapons, or ammunition. She must also “be of good behavior, obey all laws, and remain arrest-free.”

If there are no parole violations, the agreement will be reviewed in five years.

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