Charges Dismissed Against Arsonist Of Parks-Belk Building In Morristown

The man who was arrested for setting a building in downtown Morristown on fire back in 2024 is now out of jail. Dustin Click with the district attorney’s office says that the arson case against Jeffery Cicirelli has been dismissed and he is now out of jail. Cicirelli has been in the Hamblen County jail since he set the Parks-Belk building in downtown Morristown on fire in January 2024. Cicirelli told police at the time of his arrest, he planned on setting more buildings on fire.

 Click says the case had to be dropped because the prosecution’s witness was unable to make it to court. That witness was the building’s owner, David Silverstein, who resides in New York. Silverstein’s mother was recently hospitalized and he could not make the trip to Tennessee to appear in court. Cicirelli invoked his right to a speedy trial, so the case had to be dismissed. However the dismissal was done without prejudice, so the state can recharge Cicirelli when the Hamblen County Grand Jury meets again in May. The Parks-Belk building was an historic part of downtown Morristown, but had to be torn down after the fire left it structurally unsafe.