Man charged with setting home on fire after his son was killed by a pit bull faces 15 years

A man who police say was in an alcohol-fueled rage when he set a fire to an occupied New London home after learning his newborn son was mauled to death by a family dog is facing up to 15 years in prison.Timothy Settles, 36, formerly of Norwich, appeared in New London Superior Court on Thursday with his head down as he listened to Judge John Newson discuss his options. Assistant State's Attorney Steven Carney has offered Settles 15 years in prison with a right for Settles' lawyer to argue for less time. He is expected to make a decision on whether to accept the plea agreement or take his case to trial at his next court appearance on Dec 3.Settles is charged with first-degree arson, first-degree reckless endangerment and first-degree criminal mischief for setting the early morning fire on May 11, 2021, at a multi-family home at 10 Rosemary St.A day earlier, police said Jerre Johnson, Settles' girlfriend and the mother of the child, along with Settles' mother, Shelia Settles, were at a home on McKinley Avenue in Norwich. Shelia Settles was visiting and was holding Settles' one-month-old son when the dog, a pit bull mix, ripped the baby from her arms and mauled the infant. The child died from his injuries at Backus Hospital. The dog was later euthanized.At the time of the incident, Settles was in a court-ordered drug and alcohol rehabilitation program in Stamford where he was "on the road to address my mental health issues," according to a May 29 letter he wrote to the court."With only a month left to go to complete my program at Liberation ... I was unfortunately derailed by the horrific news of my newborn son being murdered," Settles wrote. "It brought excruciating indescribable pain and confusion."Police said Settles took an Uber to Norwich, visited Backus Hospital and traveled with his mother to meet with Johnson, at a home at 10 Rosemary St. in New London. Johnson's friend lived at the home.Police said Settles argued with some people at the home and at one point could be heard saying "you can't blame my mother," his arrest warrant affidavit states. Police said Settles and his mother had planned to get a hotel room at the Holiday Inn in New London, but Shelia Settles said her son's drinking was making him unable to act reasonably, so she secretly called 911.She told police Settles was breaking bottles in the hotel parking lot and was later "talking about crashing the car and/or running people over." The two arrived back at the Rosemary Street home at 3:10 a.m.Settles became further enraged when he found out Johnson was not there. Settles' mother said she became so frightened that she decided to drive back to her home in New York City by herself, police said. New London firefighters responded to reports of a fire at the home shortly before 4 a.m. Two tenants, including one elderly tenant, made it out of the burning home and were not injured. The fire marshal's office determined the fire was intentionally set inside the front entryway hallway.Police said Settles was captured on surveillance video entering an accessible common area several times prior to the fire starting. Settles has remained held on a $500,000 bond since his arrest on Nov. 8, 2021.Settles' Manchester-based lawyer, Ryan Barry, declined comment on the case.Settles, in his letter to the court, said he is eager "to get back on that road to progression" to address his mental health and alcoholism."My goal is to make better wiser decisions, and to live a healthy prosperous and productive life," Settles wrote. g.smith@theday.com