Fire suspect’s estranged husband disputes allegations

The man whose stepson and two sons were killed in a Pahrump home fire last week questioned whether the Nye County sheriff's office acted appropriately in arresting his estranged wife in connection with the blaze, an attorney and family friend said Sunday in a statement.

Anthony Broadhead, 27, issued the comments through Timothy B. Sutton, an attorney and family friend.

"Anthony disputes the charges against his wife," Sutton said, according to the Pahrump Valley Times, which is owned by the parent company of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

"He doesn't know the details, so it's a difficult situation all around," Sutton said. "He questions the charges, but at the same time, he wasn't there, so he doesn't know what happened either."

Sharon Broadhead, whose three children died in the mobile home fire last week, was arrested Saturday on manslaughter and child abuse charges, the Nye County sheriff's office said. An adult friend of hers also died in the fire.

Sharon Broadhead, 29, was booked and held on $35,000 bail. She faces four counts of manslaughter and three counts of child abuse by neglect causing death. She is expected to make an initial court appearance this week.

Killed in the Wednesday morning blaze were three children: Elliot Broadhead, 18 months; Zachary Broadhead, 4; and Brandon Michael Smith, 5. Brandon was Sharon Broadhead's son and Anthony Broadhead's stepson.

Firefighters pulled the three children out of the burning home, but they were pronounced dead a short time later at Desert View Regional Medical Center.

A family friend, Crystal Smiley, 24, also died in the fast-moving fire. She was contacting 911 when she succumbed to heavy black smoke, authorities said. Sharon Broadhead was the fire's lone survivor.

Nye County Sheriff Tony DeMeo said Saturday that he didn't expect any charges against Anthony Broadhead.

DeMeo said Anthony and Sharon Broadhead were called to a meeting at the sheriff's office at noon Saturday. She was arrested about 90 minutes later by Detective Joe Close and Mike Kolpak of the Nevada State Fire Marshal's Office.

A sheriff's office news release did not identify the cause of the fire but indicated Sharon Broadhead was charged because "supervision and previous fire starting within the residence by the children occurred and preventive measures from the mother was not taken."

Authorities said the children seriously damaged the double-wide mobile home several times during the five months the family lived there.

"The lack of supervision was not an isolated incident to the morning of the fire, but routine to the fact that two children destroyed an entire room with putting holes in the walls and starting fires on at least two occasions prior," the sheriff's office statement said . "This was admitted during interviews of a pillow being set on fire and another incident of a piece of paper inside the residence and the mother knowing about it."

One of the children previously was caught sneaking a lighter from his mother's purse, the release said.

The cause of the fire was not addressed in the news release, but police noted that Sharon Broadhead's lighter was not found in her purse after the fire.

Scott Lewis, chief of the Pahrump Valley Fire-Rescue Service, has said the investigation showed it was an "apparent accidental fire possibly ignited by a juvenile resident." He declined to say exactly where the fire started but did say Sharon Broadhead was in the mobile home when it started.

She suffered smoke inhalation and cuts on her hands from broken window glass, Lewis said last week.

A firefighter suffered burns on his neck, and two sheriff's deputies and a neighbor who tried to rescue the children were treated for smoke inhalation after the fire.

Sutton said the Broadheads are grateful for the outpouring of community support. He said they are turning to their faith in God to help them cope with the tragedy.

"Life continues after death," said Sutton, a volunteer in Pahrump's Mormon community. "Families can be together forever; that's one thing our members can take comfort in."

Contact reporter Antonio Planas at aplanas@
reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638.