Eugene man sentenced to 20 years after assault, arson

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- A man was sentenced to 20 years in prison after a jury found him guilty of arson and assault in Eugene.

49-year-old Avery Jerome Boyle was found guilty of second-degree assault, first-degree arson, five counts of recklessly endangering another person and assault in the fourth degree.

According to Eugene police, the arson and assault happened on different days and involved different victims but the incidents were connected.

The arson happened on Aug. 2, 2022, at 294 Bethel Drive, a large house that had been turned into a fourplex.

During the fire, employees from a building next door rescued a wheelchair-bound man from the first floor by pulling him out the window. The same employees also used a ladder and managed to rescue two women from the upstairs apartments.

Officials said that one of the women was injured when she had to jump out of the second-story window and it's estimated that it happened only 10 seconds before the flashover, when the room simultaneously combusts.

According to court documents, just days earlier on July 31, Boyle assaulted a woman with "a caustic liquid," which authorities said constituted domestic violence.