By Greg Welter
Chico Enterprise-Record
CHICO, Calif. — A man who allegedly lit himself on fire inside a Chico police transport van Tuesday night is in critical but stable condition at the UC Davis Medical Center Burn Unit in Sacramento, a police official said.
Identified as Chico resident Joseph A. Devincenzi, 19, the man was taken into custody around 6:30 p.m. on The Esplanade by an officer who reported he was being extremely combative, and allegedly attempting to kick out a window in his patrol car.
Devincenzi was intoxicated, police said, and arrested for using alcohol in violation of court-ordered probation terms.
He was transported to the Chico Police Department about 7 p.m. While inside a van at a secured entrance to the Humboldt Road building, he somehow managed to light his upper body on fire.
Police Capt. Lori MacPhail said he used a lighter, but investigators don’t know how he hid it from officers and was able to operate it.
MacPhail confirmed he was handcuffed and shackled at the time.
MacPhail said Devincenzi was never in the police building, and was scheduled for direct transport to Butte County Jail in Oroville.
She said a multi-agency law enforcement protocol team was assembled and worked through the night, investigating the incident much as it would an officer-involved shooting.
MacPhail said certain aspects of the incident remain to be probed, but most of the work is done.
A formal finding by the protocol team is forthcoming.
MacPhail said Devincenzi had a history of threatening suicide, and had made such a threat while in custody Tuesday night.
Copyright 2009 Chico Enterprise-Record