Hilton free, returns to Lynn after her trial acquittal for ’99 arson

LAWRENCE – The Lynn grandmother accused of five counts of second degree murder, arson and injury to a firefighter was found innocent by jurors in Lawrence Superior Court Wednesday afternoon.Kathleen Hilton, 62, was accused of setting fire to 42-46 High Rock St. in Lynn, the home of her son’s estranged girlfriend Krystina Sutherland and their two children.Prosecutors alleged that Hilton sought to damage the home badly enough that Sutherland would be forced to move back in with her son, Charles Loayza. Sutherland had previously placed a restraining order against Loayza, preventing him from seeing his children. Plans backfired, however, and cost the lives of five unrelated individuals living on the third floor of the triple decker.Heriberto Feliciano, 34, and his wife, Sonia Hernandez, 32; their daughters, Sonia, 12, and Maria, 13, and their niece, Glorimar Santiago, 11, who was sleeping over, died from smoke inhalation.Hilton was arrested just days after the incident, and after hours of interrogation, confessed to Lynn and State Police that she had used a concoction of oils and a lit cigarette to ignite the second floor landing, just outside of Sutherland’s apartment door.Her case was tried, and then appealed twice, once in 2005 and later going all the way to the state Supreme Judicial Court in 2007, before landing in Lawrence before Judge Howard Whitehead on Jan. 12. All the while, Hilton remained in jail.Five long weeks, 80 witness testimonies, and 187 exhibits later, both sides rested their case and jurors went into deliberation. It took the 12 jurors 14 hours over nearly three days to reach their verdict. They asked two questions – one regarding the law governing recorded confessions and the other to define “reasonable doubt.”During the hours before the verdict, defense attorneys Michael Natola and Gary Zerola remained confident they would have another win under their belts.”This was the best defense I’ve ever mounted in the 30 years I’ve practiced law,” said Natola, who had been with Hilton since the beginning. “Since day one, I don’t think she did it. I really don’t.”It was Natola’s faith in Hilton that lured Zerola to the case.”I am 100 percent confident,” he said before the jurors declared Hilton’s innocence. “I can’t wait to get her out of here.”Zerola held the hand of Hilton, who stood dressed in pale khakis and a metallic olive green shirt, as they awaited the good news. Tears fell from her face.Tears also fell from the faces of the victim’s family, who traveled from Puerto Rico to show their support.After the verdict was announced, Whitehead inquired about the future of Hilton.”There is no question she is a woman of significant limitations,” he told the defense, adding that it would be difficult for her to adapt after having been removed from the general public for the last decade.Zerola said he and Natola would personally drive Hilton to her daughter’s home in Lynn, where she lives with her husband.”It’s amazing to be a part of this process,” said Zerola, relieved from the victory. “From day one I believed in her innocence?I’m glad the jury saw it that way,too.”Essex District Attorney spokesman Steve O’Connell declined comment, citing DA’s office policy.