Woman charged in death of Milwaukee man after setting house on fire

By: CBS58 Staff

Posted: Jun 22, 2017 11:19 AM CDT

NOW: Woman charged in death of Milwaukee man after setting house on fire

39 year old Java Wright made her first court appearance Thursday morning since being arrested over the weekend.

The Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office charged Wright with first degree reckless homicide and arson of building.

According to the criminal complaint, Wright set fire to a building near W. Wright St and N. 12th St. around 7:45 last Friday evening.

The criminal complaint states Wright was upset with her boyfriend because he locked her out. In an attempt to get him out, she broke a window using a crate, and then set fire to curtains inside the home.

72 year old Willie Greer died in the fire.

Wright was wearing a yellow suicide prevention vest and kept her head down for most of the hearing.

Milwaukee County Court Commissioner Barry Phillips read the criminal complaint before addressing the courtroom.

"The allegations in this complaint are very serious and both disturbing and horrendous," Phillips said.

"But even if it was justified, for doing what you did, the act that you chose in that situation with the amount of people that was there that could have been injured, showed a total disregard for any life, including your boyfriend," he continued

Phillips set cash bail for Java at $250,000. Wright will be back in court for a preliminary hearing on June 30.