Former Kirksville mayor Debbie Masten will remain behind bars, after losing another appeal in federal court late Monday afternoon.
Masten’s attorney had filed the appeal asking for a new trial based on what they claimed was newly discovered videotape evidence from the scene, which they allege was suppressed by the prosecution.
After hearing a full day of evidence, Federal Judge Carol Jackson denied Masten’s motion for a new trial.
On New Year's Day 2005, firefighters responded to a fire call at Too Tall's Two, then owned by Masten and her husband. The fire was first reported shortly after the bar closed in the early morning hours of Jan. 1. Fire crews were able to limit the damage to the inside of the building.
After an investigation, Masten was indicted on a federal arson charge in December 2006.
Her original trial began in May 2007 in federal court in Saint Louis. Following a two week trial, the jury found Masten guilty after deliberating less than two hours. Masten was sentenced to just more than five years in federal prison.
She is currently being held in a women's facility in Pekin, Ill. She is scheduled to be released in April 2012.
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