A Carroll man accused of leaving a burning box unattended in the basement of an occupied structure has been ordered to serve 10 days in jail. According to Carroll County District court records, 37-year-old Joshua Norbert Renze pled guilty Thursday to one count of reckless use of fire, a serious misdemeanor, as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors. All but 10 days of a one-year jail sentence were suspended with credit for time served. Renze was placed on probation for one year and ordered to pay over $1,000 in fines, surcharges, court costs and restitution. Renze was arrested by the Carroll Police Department earlier this year following an investigation into a Feb. 19 incident in the 100 block of N. Clark Street. Authorities say Renze started the fire in the basement of his residence and left without extinguishing it. An upstairs neighbor smelled smoke and removed the burning box from the structure before it could spread.
