Woman Sets Ex-Boyfriend's Door Ablaze After Fight: Cops

After a fight, a woman set the front door on fire of the home where she had "recently lived together as a family," with her ex-boyfriend and his girlfriend, authorities said.

Kaelyn Marie Partenza, 26, of Deerfield Beach, was arrested on Wednesday, along with her ex-boyfriend Brian Morris. She faces two counts of arson first-degree dwelling with people present, and he faces a charge of aggravated assault with a firearm/domestic violence and battery domestic violence.

"I got mad and lit the door on fire," Partenza told authorities.

The incident began when Partenza went to the apartment "to get closure on her relationship with Morris," the complaint affidavit said.

Morris opened the door pointing a handgun at her, and they had a physical fight on the stairs, but being in fear of her life, she ran out and left her belongings on the front porch, the affidavit said.

Partenza said she ran away and Morris threw her boots at her and hit her in the arm, causing bruising and swelling, authorities said. He went back inside the apartment.

Morris saw that she was peeking into the apartment through a small separation between the door and door frame on the lower corner of the front door, the affidavit said.

He put a towel against the inside to stop her from looking and propped it up with a speaker, authorities said.

Shortly thereafter, he saw flames and smoke coming into the apartment from the towel and the door ablaze, according to the affidavit.

Morris' current girlfriend extinguished the blaze, authorities said.

Partenza told police she intentionally used lighter fluid she found a grill outside and lit a cigarette to start the fire, the complaint said.

She was being held on $50,000 bond.

Contact Us