A 25-year-old Los Angeles woman pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of attempted murder and other felonies after prosecutors say she set fire to San Francisco's famous "Mrs. Doubtfire" house earlier this week.
Tyqwon Eugenen Welch was charged Friday with, among other counts, arson and the attempted murder of Douglas K. Ousterhout, who owns the house and is one of the country's leading experts in gender reassignment surgery. Her bail was re-set from $2 million to $1 million, and if she can post it, ordered to stay away from the house, Ousterhout and his son.
The judge ordered the media not to show Welch, who is transgender, in its coverage, because he was worried that might interfere with a fair trial.
Two small fires were set Monday about 8 p.m. on the Pacific Height's home's doorstep and along the garage.
Though the fires were small, prosecutors stood behind the stiff charges.
"Anytime you have an arson, it’s very concerning, especially when it involves someone’s residence," said San Francisco Assistant District Attorney Alex Bastian outside court. "And it’s especially concerning because fires are so unpredictable. Given the totality, we feel the charges are very appropriate."
Bastian didn't release too many details of the case, but confirmed that the doctor and Welch had a confrontation prior to the fire.
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"There are certain pieces of evidence that will be publicly available at a later date, which led the investigation to the defendant and the defendant was subsequently arrested," Bastian said.
Welch's public defender, Elizabeth Hilton, asked people not to jump to conclusions about her client's guilt or innocence, adding that the evidence was circumstantial.
"Sometimes, things aren’t what they appear," she said.
Hilton is concerned that Welch is being held in the men's side of the jail, even though she identifies as a woman.
Sheriff's Chief Deputy Kathy Gorwood said Welch was booked as a man. And while Welch is being housed on the men’s side of the jail, Gorwood noted there there is a "gender non-comforming" area on both the men's and women’s sides for people who don’t traditionally identify as a biological male or female. Inmates who request these areas, get to stay in them. Gorwood would not say whether Welch was staying in that special area, because “gender identity is a personal matter.”
Ousterhout told police after the fire that he suspected a former patient. Through his San Francisco office this week, he declined to comment. Hilton would not comment on whether her client knew Ousterhout.
Robin Williams' death last year put Ousterhout's home back in the spotlight, and the quaint, beige house quickly morphed into a makeshift memorial for the late comedian and actor.
Ousterhout told NBC Bay Area he had bought the cozy Victorian after the 1993 film became a hit. As a surgeon who treats transgender patients and turns "boys' faces into girls' faces," he said "it seemed only natural" for him to own the home where Williams' face was transformed into that of Mrs. Doubtfire.
