This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

D is a young Indian on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation. On February 12, 1996, at approximately 10 a.m., a fire occurred at the Morning Star School. It caused extensive damage to the building, but no one was injured. D was twelve years old and in the seventh grade. D and a friend went into the girl’s restroom of the school. As the girls talked, D began playing with a lighter she had with her. D lit one corner of a paper towel from one of the dispensers. She let the towel burn for a few seconds, then blew out the flame and put the burned towel in the sink. D then returned to the paper towel dispenser and lit the left corner of another towel protruding from it. She let the flame burn for a second and blew it out. She then lit the right corner of the same towel in the dispenser, blew it out and followed her friend out of the bathroom. The building subsequently caught fire, and the school was evacuated. Investigation determined the fire originated in the girl’s restroom. D was convicted of arson and appealed.

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