Setting the World Aflame? This Abroad Student Just Set a Bar on Fire
AbroadJesuits November 20, 2018 The New England Classic
PARMA, ITALY — A Boston College student studying abroad at the University of Parma is being held in police custody after setting an entire bar on fire.
Police reports indicate that the student, Candace Whiteshire (CSOM ‘20), smoked an entire pack of cigarettes before accidentally dropping a still-burning dart onto a bale of hay inside the bar.
Within minutes, said the report, the bar was “decidedly cooked beyond al dente.”
At a preliminary trial, Whiteshire defended her innocence through her lawyer by citing the unofficial Jesuit motto, “Go, set the world aflame!”
Due to mistranslations between the English-speaking Whiteshire and her lawyer, however, the phrase was presented to the judge in Italian as, “May this entire country burn under the fiery gaze of Jehovah!”
The judge, Giacamo da Ponte, ordered that Whiteshire be held without bail until a trial date was set.
After the hearing, the Boston College Office of International Programs (OIP) released a statement regarding Whiteshire’s situation.
“We are pleased that this student has received the opportunity to learn about the Italian criminal justice system,” the statement read. “We wish her the best of luck on her journey of cultural- and self-exploration.”
