Family of woman killed in Arizona arson wants justice

PHOENIX — Catherine Eversole was about to start a new chapter in her life. She had just graduated from college and recently become a grandmother. Before she could meet her grandson for the first time, she died in an intentional fire.

The mother of three was at the J & J Sofa Manufacturing store near 59th Avenue and Buckeye Road in West Phoenix when a man and woman drove to the store, lit an object on fire and threw it at the building, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.

Eversole and another person, whose identity has not yet been confirmed, were trapped when the fire engulfed everything. Both died in the flames.

“We weren’t there to save her,” said Eversole’s daughter Patricia Howe. “She needed us and we didn’t know it.”

Nearly a month after the deadly fire, Howe, her newborn son and other family members set out to see the aftermath for themselves, to see where their beloved daughter took her final breaths.

“It’s a lot to take in,” said Carol Williams, Eversole’s aunt. “Just knowing (Eversole) was laying there suffering, it just overwhelmed me.”

The family said Eversole’s body was so badly burned that they could not hold a funeral for her. Instead, they held a small vigil at the scene.

“Words cannot express how much I miss her now,” Williams said. “I wish I could hug her one more time.”

Howe and other family members described Eversole as a great mother who cared for everyone. She loved to sing and spend time with her children. Howe said the last conversation she had with her mother was a phone call the day before the fire.

“We talked about how things were going and then she told me that it was her great joy to be my mother and to help me through what I was going through,” Howe said.

Williams remembered seeing the fire on the news, but had no idea her niece was one of the victims. After not hearing from Eversole for a few days, they reported her missing to authorities. Then, last week, they got the call that Eversole was dead. She had died in the fire.

“I’m very angry because my niece didn’t deserve this,” Williams said.

At that point, MCSO arrested a suspect named Katisha Smith, who is charged with murder and arson. Smith reportedly told investigators she was “coerced into participating in the incident,” records show.

The other suspect is still on the run. Howe said her family will not have closure until he is arrested.

“My mother is dead because of these people,” Howe said. “We need to get justice for my mother and find the second person who was involved because she didn’t deserve to die like that.”

Howe has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral expenses. You can find the page by clicking here.

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