Michigan Man Accuses Wife of Trying to Set Him on Fire While Sleeping: ‘She Was Lighting the Matches’

A man in Michigan claims his now-ex-wife tried to set him on fire while he was sleeping.

According to WNEM, Julie Boxley has been charged with "great bodily harm less than murder and assault with intent to murder" after allegedly trying to set her then-husband James Boxley on fire at their apartment in 2021.

"I woke up by cold liquid [being poured] on me and right at the moment, I didn’t know exactly what was happening because I just came out of a deep sleep. It was a small flame, I could see it on top of me, and all of the sudden I realized what was going on," James claimed in court on Aug. 21.

"I am looking at her like, 'What is going on here?' And then she took a book of matches, and she was lighting the matches and throwing them at me and all she would say is 'I hate you,'" he continued.

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Julie’s attorney, Jennifer France, said her client's "history of mental illness" should be taken into account for her alleged actions.

"We don’t have the results of that, but as I stated in court several times today, Ms. Boxley has a history of mental illness, and I think that when we get all the stuff back from the forensic center, we will all see how severely ill she was at the time," France said, according to WNEM.

According to WLUC TV6, Julie is currently being held without bond "because of the severity of her alleged crime."

She is expected to be arraigned in Alger County Circuit Court in Munising, Mich., on Sept. 19.