Alfred Russo, Patricia Harrison and Wayne Cummings, accused of arson, in Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth Friday, Feb. 8.
PLYMOUTH — Patricia Harrison, her boyfriend Wayne Cummings and acquaintance Alfred Russo, all indicted in the alleged July 5, 2018 arson at the former JJ’s pub, 16 Liberty St., Hanson, appeared in Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth on Friday, Feb. 8.
The pile of debris at 16 Liberty St. has drawn the ire of town officials and residents since the fire in July. Hazardous material, specifically asbestos, was found in the burnt remains of the building.
The town brought Harrison to court in December, to at minimum, put up a fence around the site before cleaning it up in the hopes of encouraging her to move along with the cleanup.
But Harrison sold the property, according to records on file with the Registry of Deeds, for $20,000 on Feb. 7.
Hanson Town Administrator Michael McCue said the new owners of the property, Richard and Diane Murphy, also own rental property nearby and are highly motivated to clean up the site.
He said it is now their responsibility to remove the hazardous materials and rubble, and he expects that to be done within two weeks of the time the sale was recorded.
Harrison and Cummings were before the court for a pre-trial hearing. Assistant District Attorney Alexander Zane represented the commonwealth.
Harrison, who had previously privately retained Jack Atwood, a Plymouth-based defense attorney, to represent her, asked the judge for a court-appointed attorney. The probation department determined that she was eligible, and she was assigned Sean O’Brien, a Randolph-based defense attorney.
Cummings will retain his private counsel, as will Russo. All three are being tried together for the alleged arson.
Harrison, Cummings and Russo will next be in Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth on April 4, 2019 for a pretrial conference.