Dems push back against Herndon’s ‘misinformation’

By Zach Hagadone
Reader Staff

There is no known motive for the alleged arson that destroyed the Army Surplus 1 store on July 4, but that hasn’t stopped many commentators from indulging in speculation.

Jennifer S. Meyer is suspected of setting the blaze just as the public fireworks display at City Beach was concluding, ultimately destroying the building at the corner of Oak Street and Fifth Avenue in a dramatic fire that set off an unknown amount of ammunition and resulted in the loss of a reported $500,000 in merchandise — as well as numerous personal belongings of owner Cornel Rasor and his family.

A screenshot from a recent video Sen. Scott Herndon posted to his Facebook page making suppositions about the motives for the July 4 Army Surplus 1 Fire. Courtesy Facebook.

Meyer appeared in court for the first time July 17 before Magistrate Judge Luke Hagelburg, but refused to communicate — first declining to appear on a video conference call from the jail and then, having been brought to the courthouse in person, placing her head on the table at which she was seated and staying silent. 

Hagelburg set a bond of $1 million, citing fears that Meyer would flee if released prior to trial. If found guilty of first-degree arson, she faces up to 25 years in prison, fines of up to $100,000 or both. Meyer is scheduled to appear next at a pretrial hearing  Wednesday, July 31.

Investigators have underscored that they have not identified a motive, and while much of the public has responded with sympathy and support for Rasor and his family, an undercurrent of politically charged rhetoric emerged even as the blaze was being extinguished by first responders.

Much of the social media chatter has come in the form of unfounded speculation that the suspected arson was a form of “leftist” political violence committed against Rasor, who is a longtime leading figure in local conservative politics and current Republican candidate for the District 1B seat in the Idaho House of Representatives.

Rasor did not respond to a request for comment, but has said in the past that he doesn’t know Meyer, and in numerous social media posts has avoided making any speculative statements regarding what could have led Meyer — should she be found guilty — to set alight the business that he spent more than 40 years managing and later owning.

“She is clearly distraught, mixed up and devastated at least as nearly as I can tell by what she now realizes is the complete destruction of her life,” Rasor wrote in a Facebook post following Meyer’s initial court appearance. “I wish that upon no one. I was not given an opportunity to talk with her. But my prayer will be that she hears the gospel and responds to it.”

Most recently, District 1 Republican Sen. Scott Herndon — who lost his primary bid against Jim Woodward in May and will leave office January 2025 — added grist to the rumor mill when he posted a pair of videos on July 17 and July 18, purporting to reveal an “interesting documented connection” between Meyer and Steve Johnson, the latter a current Democratic candidate for the Dist. 1 Bonner County commissioner seat.

Herndon also serves as the chair of the Bonner County Republican Party, and in a comment on his first video post wrote that Army Surplus had “essentially been Bonner County Republican headquarters for years.”

While stating that he was not leveling any accusations, he went on in both videos to show that filings with the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office identify the principal address for Meyer’s sign printing and publishing company Bonner Media as the same location as Johnson’s family farm in Sagle, where he has lived for decades. In relaying the details of those filings, Herndon repeatedly identified Johnson’s physical address.

In addition, Herndon stated that Bonner Media also shared a phone number with Johnson’s farm, as shown on a third-party website.

While stating that he did not know why those apparent connections existed, Herndon went on to say that Meyer had other dealings with local Democrats via her sign business and noted that the Bonner County Democratic Party gave Johnson’s campaign a large donation days after the July 4 fire.

The Reader also found the apparent connections between Johnson and Meyer during its reporting on July 17, and asked Johnson to explain how his address came to be listed in Meyer’s business filings with the state.

In a story published online the evening of July 17 — and in print on the morning of July 18, before Herndon posted his second video — Johnson went on record that Meyer rented a room from him between 2017 and 2019, and, “I haven’t had any interaction with her since.”

“I don’t know why she would have kept this address, because it doesn’t make any sense,” he told the Reader at the time. “She hasn’t lived here for over four years.”

Johnson said that the police had already contacted him regarding the apparent connection, and SPD Chief Corey Coon confirmed to the Reader that Johnson had told investigators what he also related to the Reader.

Coon added that, “Senator Herndon has not been in touch with the SPD in reference to the information he has gathered.”

As the investigation is ongoing, SPD has repeatedly called on members of the community to offer any information they may have regarding Meyer’s activities on July 4, or anything else that might help officials build a clearer picture of the case.

“If you know her, if you associated with her, if you have any information that can help us in our investigation, don’t be afraid to call us,” Coon said at the July 17 meeting of the Sandpoint City Council, noting that tips are made anonymously.

Call 208-265-1482 with any information that might aid in the investigation.

Johnson added that while Meyer lived on his property she never displayed any erratic or unusual behavior, nor did she indicate any drug or alcohol abuse, and “was not political whatsoever — at least not that I ever saw or heard.”

Since 2019, Meyer has listed Ponderay and Sandpoint P.O. boxes, as well as a physical address in Ponderay, in her business filings. The search warrant served by authorities was to her residence on Oak Street in Sandpoint — not far from the former Army Surplus building.

Meanwhile, Meyer has worked with Democratic candidates to provide campaign signage, but she has also been hired by Republicans — including current Dist. 3 Bonner County commissioner candidate Ron Korn and Dimitry Borisov, who lost to Korn in the May 2024 Republican primary. 

The Reader asked Herndon if he was aware that SPD had already contacted Johnson regarding the address filing, or if he had been aware of Johnson’s explanation given to police and the Reader prior to making his second video. He did not respond.

Herndon also did not respond to questions related to what precise evidence he has linking the Bonner County Democrats to Meyer or whether he reported his “interesting documented connection” to SPD.

The Bonner County Democratic Party issued a statement on July 18 condemning the alleged arson and rejecting the “misinformation” that the organization said Herndon was trafficking with his social media posts.

“[W]e are disappointed that Mr. Herndon has chosen to release baseless accusations and misinformation, and we feel that it is important to set the record straight,” the Democrats stated. “To conclude that Bonner County Democrats were in collusion with the alleged arsonist simply because we did business with Bonner Media is ridiculous. Bonner Media is a sign printing company, and works for a variety of businesses and campaigns as a matter of business, including Republicans Dimitry Borisov and Ron Korn. In our commitment to promoting opportunity as a way to strengthen our community, Bonner County Democrats have worked with numerous small, local businesses over the years.”

The statement added that Johnson has rented to a number of other tenants over the years in order to help provide affordable housing in the county.

“Rather than speculate about why there is any confusion about her address, we defer to the dedicated professionals working to uncover the truth of the case to release the facts at the appropriate time,” the party stated.

Regarding the donation to Johnson, Bonner County Democrats Chair Linda Larson wrote that the central committee gives money to all of its candidates.

“We would hope that the Bonner County Republican Central Committee would be similarly proud to announce that they have given contributions within the limits of state campaign finance law 

to Republican candidates,” 

she stated.

The statement thanked the SPD for its work on the case and underscored the importance of allowing investigators to do their job “without publicly promoting rumors, manufacturing controversy and speaking about a different party candidate’s home address during an ongoing investigation into a shocking crime.”

In addition, the statement continued, “We would hope our responsible Republican neighbors would agree that there is no place for this type of behavior in our community, and we reject Mr. Herndon’s efforts to further divide us,” while hoping for a conclusion in the case that would “determine the truth and bring closure for Mr. Rasor during this difficult time.”

In a July 20 article in the Bonner County Daily Bee, Herndon called that statement, “an example of the Democrats arguing against a straw man when there are some inconvenient and interesting documents pertaining to members of their party.”

He did not respond to a request from the Reader to clarify what he meant by a “straw man” in that context.

Chief Coon told the Reader in an email July 22 that his department, in conjunction with the Idaho State Fire Marshals and the ATF division, is continuing the investigation and, in the meantime, “We aim to address several unresolved investigative questions and avoid drawing unsupported conclusions. We are working to promptly answer questions regarding the motive in this case and whether an accelerant was used.”

In another statement to the Reader, Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm wrote that while he had no comment on Herndon’s Facebook posts, he emphasized “that we have a transparent, robust and fair judicial system, and that all are presumed innocent until proven guilty.”

Democrat Kathryn Larson, who is challenging Rasor for the House 1B legislative seat in the November election, wrote in a statement to the Reader that, “Scott Herndon needs a time out. He is wasting people’s time and energy and trying to sow seeds of anger, fear and divisiveness. Let’s let the police do their work.”

In addition, she wrote, “A local business was burned down. We don’t know why. I’m thankful that the fire department responded so effectively. The fire could have spread and caused more damage and harm. I appreciate the professionalism of our local law enforcement. They did their work and caught a suspect quickly. Scott would like to turn this into a dangerous political game where he doxes good community members and tells a false narrative.”

Johnson also provided a statement to the Reader, writing, “My sincere condolences to Cornel Rasor and his family as they recover from the total destruction of their business in the recent fire. All of us feel their loss. … 

“In regards to the divisive and dishonest videos Scott Herndon put on Facebook, it is his desperate attempt to be relevant after his landslide loss to Jim Woodward in the May Republican primary,” Johnson added. “Sadly, Scott Herndon does not understand the Idaho values of honesty, respect or integrity.”