Chunchula Man Accused of Attacking Family, Setting Home on Fire

Mobile County sheriff’s deputies arrested a Chunchula man this week on arson and domestic violence charges after he was accused of attacking his ex-girlfriend and her family members before setting fire to her home, according to court records.

Curtis Lamar Webster, 53, faces charges of first-degree arson and third-degree domestic violence, according to Mobile County Metro Jail records. He remained in custody as of Thursday afternoon.

According to a sworn statement filed in court by a woman identifying herself as Webster’s ex-girlfriend, the confrontation began after Webster had been drinking and became angry, grabbing her arm and striking her before she asked him to leave her home. That request, the woman said, only escalated his anger further.

The woman told authorities that Webster grabbed a knife at one point and advanced toward her niece, prompting her to step between them. She said she was cut on the side of her face during the struggle and sustained additional injuries, including bruising to her arm, a second cut and a black eye.

She also told deputies that Webster turned his attention toward her mother, choking her before the woman was pushed across a bed. Her mother fled out the back door with Webster in pursuit, running to a neighbor’s house, while the woman said she escaped out the front door.

Before leaving the scene, Webster allegedly threatened to burn down the home. According to the complaint, a fire was set at the residence roughly a week before his arrest while the ex-girlfriend and at least one other person were still inside the house.

Jail records show Webster has faced criminal charges on at least three previous occasions, with two of those cases involving domestic violence allegations. Court records do not indicate the outcomes of those earlier cases.

The case remains under investigation by the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.

About the charges

Under Alabama law, first-degree arson applies when a person intentionally damages a building by starting a fire or causing an explosion while another person is present inside. It is a Class A felony, the state’s most serious felony class, punishable by 10 to 99 years or life in prison. Third-degree domestic violence is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to a year in jail.

People experiencing domestic violence can reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline at any time at 1-800-799-7233.