PORT ANGELES — Prosecutors have charged a 63-year-old woman with arson for allegedly setting a fire in her apartment in a west-side complex this week.
Charging documents filed in Clallam County Superior Court allege that Marie Adeline Calkins started the fire Tuesday afternoon inside the doorway of the apartment she rents on South C Street.
She told officers she lighted the fire because “she was depressed and upset that her kitty litter box was full and smelled,” according to the court records.
Calkins was charged Wednesday with felony first-degree arson, and her arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 22 in Superior Court.
Judge George L. Wood set Calkins’ bail at $50,000 during her first court appearance and ordered a mental health assessment.
No one was injured in the blaze that was spotted by passing Port Angeles firefighters at 1402 S. C St.
Firefighters rescued a cat that was nearly overcome by smoke after being trapped in the apartment. The animal was taken to a veterinarian for treatment.
