AUBURN — A Lisbon man who set fire to his wife’s clothing and the house she lived in was sentenced Wednesday to serve four and a half years in prison on an arson charge.
Androscoggin County Superior Court Justice MaryGay Kennedy sentenced Michael Hersom, 42, of 12 Huston St. to 15 years in prison, but suspended 10 and a half years of that term.
Hersom entered a plea to the charge Wednesday; the sentence had been brokered in an agreement between Hersom and prosecutors.
Before he serves that sentence, Hersom must first spend 16 months behind bars, the remainder of an earlier sentence on a charge of operating under the influence.
He also was sentenced to two years for felony violation of condition of release for having contact with his wife, Sherry, to whom he wrote while under a court order to have no contact with her. That sentence will run at the same time as the arson sentence.
After he serves roughly six years in prison, Hersom will be on probation for four years. During that time, he must have no contact with his wife or their 14-year-old son.
Hersom also must refrain from having alcohol, illegal drugs and firearms. He must undergo substance abuse and mental health evaluations as well as counseling for anger and violence issues.
He will have to pay $2,400 in restitution to the Lisbon Fire Department, which responded to the April 6 fire.
Hersom argued with his wife after he was released from jail. With police accompaniment, she left the house after taking many of her belongings.
After she left, Hersom pulled a drawer of clothing from her bureau and set the left rear corner of the home on fire. A fire investigator determined the fire had been set.
Damage to the home was estimated at about $100,000.
Defense attorney James Howaniec said his client had “significant” mental health problems and was evaluated by a state psychologist. Hersom understood the consequences of his actions, Howaniec said.
Sherry Hersom told the judge Wednesday that she hopes her husband gets the emotional and mental health services he needs.
“I just want to be left alone by this man,” she said.
Hersom apologized to his wife and son for the damage he had caused, and said he was “hurting immensely at the time.”
cwilliams@sunjournal.com
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