Eviction ends in tragedy

A series of financial setbacks left Wanda Dunn facing eviction from the house in Pasadena where her family had lived for generations.

Dunn, 53, told neighbors that she would rather die than leave.

Early Monday, the day of her expected eviction, firefighters pulled her body out of the house as it burned. She apparently had set it on fire before shooting herself in the head, authorities said.

"We knew it was going to happen," said Steve Brooks, who lived across the street. "It was nobody's fault; it was everybody's fault."

As Brooks watched the flames, he noticed that Dunn had left two of her plants on his porch, along with a note: "Please take good care of us or find us a good home." She also had left several inexpensive toys, along with the name and address of a charity organization.

On Sunday night, Dunn spent hours moving boxes and packing her car, said next-door neighbor Scott Harden. He knew about the foreclosure and eviction, and Dunn's suicide threat, so he "was on red alert."

About 5 a.m. the next morning, Harden said he smelled smoke and saw flames in Dunn's house in the 1000 block of North Wilson Avenue, and immediately called 911.

But Harden said he and other neighbors thought Dunn had already left. He said they were stunned to learn that she was still inside.

"When they brought her out, we were all really surprised," he said.

The suspected arson fire engulfed the living room and dining room, but firefighters were able to douse the flames within 15 minutes, said Pasadena Fire Marshall Mark Fasick. Firefighters found Dunn in bed in a back room, with a gun lying nearby.

Firefighters tried to revive Dunn and took her to Huntington Hospital, where she was declared dead, Fasick said.

A longtime friend of Dunn was living in her garage at the time of the fire but was unhurt, authorities said.

The stucco house and garage were crowded with newspapers, books and clothes, making it difficult for firefighters to make their way through, Fasick said.

The Los Angeles County coroner's office plans to perform an autopsy this week to determine if Dunn died from the gunshot wound, but Pasadena police Lt. John Dewar said that is the most likely cause and that the death is presumed to be a suicide.

"She was made aware of Monday's eviction," he said. "That may have been what precipitated the arson and death."

Police are still trying to determine the history of the house's ownership.