Today the bulldozers have arrived at 400 S. Leopard Road in Berwyn, Chester County and Easttown Township. We have been living this since the first fire in 2024. Charged with arson in one fire here is still Kathryn Calmus Frankel. She was charged in the new year with a dangerous fire in York County, PA. She was also charged with some sort of fire in Delaware County (Radnor Township.) I am uncertain as to which prison she is located in – I presume York County which is county of latest arson.
Frankel has not been tried in any of these cases as of yet, although I did notice this on the Delaware County, PA docket:
Is there a chance she pleads on all of these cases? Who knows. The media down here has not followed up and we haven’t heard anything out of the various District Attorneys’ offices about that have we?
I am so sad that this quirky old house is becoming something we will maybe remember for a while and then forget as ashes to ashes dust to dust…and we know a McMansion shall replace part of our Chester County history, but two brutal fires have killed this piece of history.
This is yet another reason why this country needs better mental health services.
Here is one more photo and then to follow current dockets from 3 counties and a couple of prior posts.
Bye house. You were once beautiful, quirky, and loved even by strangers driving by.
On July 31, 2024 the Chester County District Attorney’s office formerly charged Kathryn Calmus Frankel with arson after the July 23rd SECOND destructive fire at 400 Leopard Road in Berwyn, in Easttown Township. The FIRST destructive fire of May1st I guess is still under investigation? There have been no updates that I know of, do you?
Now the preliminary hearing was scheduled in front of Magisterial District Justice Mackenzie W. Smith at his court on 1572 Paoli Pike in West Chester ORIGINALLY on August 5th. It has been CONTINUED to September 9th and she is represented by Joseph P. McMahon of Lancaster, PA.
I have no news on the actual house. I have driven by a few times since the July fire and it is surrounded by chain link fencing and is so sad to see. I do not know if it will ever rise from these ashes, and if they demolish it I hope people document that in photos. It is a great loss as a historic asset.
Yesterday I wrote about the lightening striking twice at 400 Leopard Road in Berwyn. We had watched the massive local media cover this home, a very historic home to Easttown and Berwyn beginning on May 1, 2024. Yesterday morning I received a call from a friend who lives in that area in tears about 400 Leopard Road in Berwyn again.
Guess what? It went up in flames AGAIN. July 23, 2024. Maybe once you would think was an accident, and honestly I never did, but twice? My opinion is that is not a coincidence is it?
Well….it’s now July 24, 2024 and guess what? The wife (or eventually to be ex-wife) of the couple who own the house is facing well…arson charges. It’s a twist. It’s a plot twist, but is it really unexpected?
Of course this is odd, because these were the original charges filed this morning and then mid-afternoon there was this:
Here is the docket as of 4PM, showing a bail bondsman and is she in or out of jail at this point?
So, yes, again, this is the wife. And the chatter has bene insane on social media. I am not repeating it, because who knows what is true? I think a lot of it is, but I have to ask something now about the FIRST fire on May 1: is it true that had be marked as a fire of undetermined origin? If so, does that change now? I am asking because since May 1st nothing much has been heard. Yesterday around 1 or so, the Chester County District Attorney posted a very brief statement: “The Chester County District Attorney’s Office is aware of the fire that has occurred in Easttown Township and are working with the Fire Marshal to determine how it started.”
This brings us to today. I don’t get the whole firebug thing. It’s a compulsion I suppose like shoplifting or something? But is this woman a firebug or desperately unhappy and perhaps mentally ill?
A perusal on the Internet shows she is a doctor:
Now I went to the civil dockets after the first file because I was told this was a divorce house. Prior to the first fire there was a realtor sign on the lawn:
May 1st or May 2nd photo found on Facebook somewhere.
Someone messaged me today just a little while ago:
Sugartown Road is still blocked from traffic between Lenape and Leopard Road. AND… there are people all about the house and some sort of “command station” under a blue tent there as well.
Here are a few photos from today, I will post more if I get them. One is from a local who lives near by and others are from fire companies like Radnor.
Now I could post the divorce and child custody dockets, but I am not. I have to ask though if the dates on the dockets of court related events are related to the dates of fires? One was May 1st, then the fire later that day? Then other momentous events recently? Do people think that is all coincidence? In my opinion it is NOT, which is why I question WHY the May 1st fire had undetermined origins?
Someone who once called that house home said today in a comment:
Breeze Hill was built tough to have withstood what she did to it as much as it did. Not that I have any hopes for it now… How destroyed this woman’s soul must be to have done such a thing as this.
So 6 ABC and reporter Leland Pinder and 6 ABC updated their story from yesterday, so allow me to share :
There you have it. That is a lot of the chatter I heard. Of course I want to know why a house with no electricity and wasn’t habitable had the pool opened? Will Kathryn Calmus Frankel be retroactively charged with first fire? And if she is out on bail, will she go back there again? And the ATF is now part of the investigation? Will we ever hear from the Fire Marshall? Will a lot of the neighbors stop being frosty to media, I wonder?
Sign me disgusted. This woman Kathryn Calmus Frankel put neighbors and first responders at risk. And she is a doctor to boot so what does the Hippocratic oath actually mean to her? In my opinion, perhaps a study in hypocrisy? A lot of our first responders include junior firefighters and among those ranks is my friend’s daughter whom I have known since she was in elementary school. And she destroyed a local historic asset too. That is despicable.
Now what we all will want to know is can this house be saved?
We watched the massive local media cover this home, a very historic home to Easttown and Berwyn on May 1, 2024. This morning I received a call from a friend who lives in that area in tears about 400 Leopard Road in Berwyn again.
Guess what? It went up in flames AGAIN. Today, July 23, 2024. Maybe once you would think was an accident, and honestly I never did, but twice? My opinion is that is not a coincidence is it?
Here is the link to the video of the live stream I took Thomas Primetime Brown got GREAT video:
I don’t know if the video will remain, so make sure to pay attention to what was said before live stream went soundless.
I heard firefighters or EMTs say on the live feed “She was in the house.”
“One person taken to hospital with burns.”
I wonder if the ATF is looking at this now? One fire, accident….MAYBE. But TWO fires? Does lightening strike twice? Gut check says no.
Now if you go to public court dockets, the owners of this house are embroiled in divorce and custody issues. Is that all related?
I am sure the media is digging in and and I will sign off with links to prior two posts. Again, does lightening strike twice? I do not think so, but it is up to officials to be transparent here. This is so not normal.
