Demolition time

WALTON One year after arson charges were dropped, the Durr familys large, blue, fire-ravaged house still stands empty and discarded.

A fire tore through the home at 202 N. Davis St. in Walton in September 2011 and the house has remained largely untouched since the blaze. While town officials and Benjimin and Wendy Durr hope for its demolition, the Durrs are caught up in a federal court case against their insurance company to get enough money to take down the house.

The Durrs were arrested in January 2012 in connection with the fire. Though they were initially charged with arson Benjimin Durr was charged with Class C felony arson and Wendy Durr was charged with conspiracy to commit arson, a Class C felony the charges were dropped in May 2012, when they could not be substantiated.

When the charges were dropped, Cass County Prosecutor Kevin Enyeart said he no longer believed the Durrs had set the fire and that there had been holes in the investigations.

Now, the Durrs are involved in a federal court case against their insurance company, United Services Automobile Association Casualty Insurance Co., in order to get money to tear down the home, according to Mark Fryman, an attorney for the Durrs.

We allege that we had a policy in place, and we had a loss, and that they owe money to us for the insurance policy, Fryman said. So far they have not paid and denied coverage.

Fryman said he believed the insurance company is arguing that the Durrs had either caused damage or had the damage caused to their home.

Roger Wilbermuth, a spokesman for USAA, read a written statement from the company, saying the claim was not covered in the policy.

USAA works hard to handle claims quickly and fairly, but we must also carefully investigate claims, Wilbermuth said. Sometimes we have to deny claims when they are not covered.

Right now, the court case is still in its discovery phase, Fryman said. He said theyve conducted more investigations on the home, which already had investigations by the state fire marshal and the insurance company right after the fire.

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Demolition time