Parents accused of causing blaze that killed girls before Christmas

MURRIETA (KESQ) - The parents of two young girls who perished, along with their pets, in a pre-Christmas Murrieta residential fire will be charged with felony offenses, authorities said today.

Adam Keenan, 43, and Stacey Hales, 46, both of Murrieta, are accused of causing the blaze that claimed the lives of Emma Keenan, 12, and Abby Keenan, 11, in December.

Adam Keenan was arrested and booked into the Byrd Detention Center Friday on suspicion of reckless burning of an inhabited structure, child endangerment, animal cruelty and being under the influence of controlled substances at the time of the alleged crimes. He's being held in lieu of $1 million bail.  

Hales was free on a $160,000 bond. She is facing charges of child endangerment and being under the influence of controlled substances.   

"The Riverside County District Attorney's Office will be filing criminal charges against both Hales and Keenan,'' according to a Murrieta Police Department statement. ``Investigators determined there was sufficient evidence to establish probable cause that Hales and Keenan were criminally responsible for the fire and resulting deaths of the juveniles and animals.''   

The scheduling of court appearances was pending the D.A.'s filing.   

The blaze erupted shortly before 5 a.m. on Dec 20 in the couple's mobile home in the 41000 block of Knight Drive, near Adams Avenue.  

"Upon arrival, first responders found the mobile home, carport, three vehicles, two outbuildings and a large pine tree fully engulfed in flames,'' according to the police department.

Murrieta Fire & Rescue personnel worked for nearly an hour to knock down the blaze, and during a post-containment search of the residence, they discovered the sisters and ``multiple household pets'' dead, police said.   

The parents escaped with survivable injuries, along with their other daughter, Ashley Keenan. Hales' injuries inflicted major damage to her eyesight, according to published reports.

Authorities did not disclose the exact origin of the fire.   

There was no immediate word on whether either suspect has documented prior convictions.