Teen who started Eagle Creek Fire ordered to pay $36.6M in restitution

[KQ]

That's gotta hurt.

Judge: Teen who started Eagle Creek Fire ordered to pay $36.6M in restitution


HOOD RIVER COUNTY, OR (KPTV) -
The Vancouver boy responsible for igniting the Eagle Creek Fire in the Columbia River Gorge in September must pay more than $36.6 million in restitution.

Judge John A. Olson issued his opinion Monday, ordering the boy, who was 15 when he tossed fireworks while hiking last year, to pay $36,618,330.24 for his actions which sparked the Eagle Creek Fire.

The judge’s decision was announced four days after the teen’s attorney appeared in court, and called the amount of restitution sought “absurd.”

The state submitted 11 restitution claims from various parties, including the Oregon Department of Transportation and US Forest Service, as well as some of the victims who suffered property damage in the fire.

Olson declined two of the claims, finding they did not qualify for restitution. For the other nine claims, Olson wrote in his opinion that he was “satisfied that the restitution ordered in this case bears a sufficient relationship to the gravity of the offenses for which the youth was adjudicated.”

The boy pleaded guilty to 12 counts in February, including reckless burning on public land and criminal mischief. He apologized in court in February and was sentenced to five years probation and 1,920 hours of community service with the Forest Service.

While the teen’s attorney argued the restitution amount was unconstitutional, Olson wrote “the court is persuaded that an award of more than $36 million in restitution does not violate either the state or federal constitution.”

Of the claims granted restitution, $31,550 will go to Oregon State Parks, nearly $1.05 million to Union Pacific Railroad, $1.64 million to the Oregon State Fire Marshal, $12.5 million to ODOT and $21.11 million to the Forest Service.

The Eagle Creek Fire sparked Sept. 2, 2017 and burned more than 48,000 acres in the Gorge.

Olson acknowledged that the boy cannot pay the restitution in full and he authorized the Hood River Juvenile Department to establish a payment schedule.

He wrote "the court can grant full or partial satisfaction of the restitution judgment after 10 years if the youth successfully completes probation, does not commit additional offenses, and complies with the payment plans."

[digitaldeath]

LOL


court mandated payment plans

rich stuff



the bro that stole my sonata still owes me for the impound fee

[Flyoverland Captive]

firecracker BoY ain’t getting a job, ever.

He's gonna have to move across the country and change his name.

[evdog]

I'd sentence him to hard labor credited at a generous rate of $100/hour until paid off. Planting trees, fuel reduction, fire fighting, trail work.

[zion zig zag]

I'd sentence him to hard labor credited at a generous rate of $100/hour until paid off. Planting trees, fuel reduction, fire fighting, trail work.

Well that would only be about 180 years of labor. So totally reasonable.

[wyeaster]

hope he doesn't have a gun

[wooley12]

Is the Judge up for reelection soon?

[Game Over]

He's gonna have to move across the country and change his name.

I thought his name was never released?

[The AD]

I like the message this sends, but I'd be shocked if even 1% of that money is ever recouped.

[Rideski]

Olson acknowledged that the boy cannot pay the restitution in full and he authorized the Hood River Juvenile Department to establish a payment schedule.

He wrote "the court can grant full or partial satisfaction of the restitution judgment after 10 years if the youth successfully completes probation, does not commit additional offenses, and complies with the payment plans."

So ten years of probation and attempting a payment plan? I'd take that option over prison.

[abraham]

I like the message this sends, but I'd be shocked if even 1% of that money is ever recouped.

Isn't Johnny Cash one of the few/only people to pay the full ordered amount for starting one if these fires?

[KQ]

I thought his name was never released?

No name but they sure tired to help people identify the family:

The teen, who was a high school freshman last year and who likes to snowboard, is third-oldest in a large family of brothers and sisters. The parents emigrated from the Odessa region in Ukraine in 2000, the mother said.

The family attends a Pentecostal church in Vancouver with a twice-weekly service that is almost exclusively in Russian. An acquaintance from the church said that the boy's father has served as the main cook on church trips. The mother sings in the choir, the acquaintance said.

It's not unexpected that the community would worry about the fallout from the fire. For decades, Pentecostals felt persecuted under the atheist Soviet government. Thousands emigrated starting in the late 1980s when the Soviet government eased travel restrictions.

Russian-speaking Pentecostals form one of the largest Eastern European immigrant communities in the metro area, said Tatiana Osipovich, a professor emeritus of Russian at Lewis & Clark College. They live a conservative life defined by their community and their religion, she said, and are isolated.

The pastor at the family's church said the parents understand the gravity of the case but don't want to speak publicly over concern for their children's safety. He said he has concerns of his own, including a potential anti-immigrant reaction from the case.

"People (in the church) are suffering, praying that it doesn't bring some negative consequences for all of us Russian-speakers," the pastor said. "We are travelers and visitors. We are not in our country. Of course, we are a little scared."

[mtngirl79]

I stand behind my original opinion on this.. this kids life should fucking suck, but on a kid level.

If he has to pay most/all of his discretionary income towards his fine for 10 years and can get the fine dismissed after that time if he stays out if trouble I think that's fair.

If his punishment makes it impossible for him to become a productive member of society we aren't helping anyone.

[Art Shirk]

He’ll be fine if he does what he’s told for ten years. He’d be more financially screwed if he didn’t light the Gorge on fire and decided instead to go to law school.


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[Peruvian]

He will have to find work with non-tax reported income. Otherwise there is little incentive for him to work and somehow live off the public dole.

[Rideski]

Not like anyone would poke their nose into if he might be doing that.

[SkiBall]

How much does OJ still owe the Goldmasns?

[splat]

LOL


court mandated payment plans

rich stuff



the bro that stole my sonata still owes me for the impound fee

I thought he was commended for his public service?

[/had to be said]

How much does OJ still owe the Goldmasns?

Every last cent. But it's easier to have it and hide money than it is to be hindered from making it.

[SkiBall]

I thought he was commended for his public service?

[/had to be said]



Every last cent. But it's easier to have it and hide money than it is to be hindered from making it.

Good point. Guess bank robbery is in his future. At least less frowned on than burning a forest up.

[telehacker]

My jaded suggestion is no money paid. 10 years on an IHC crew from so. cal . Moving poison oak until his arms swell up and ooze the good shit. Lots of dry mopping followed by hauling cubee's or 5 ers of drip mix to the next divs.

[stuckathuntermtn]

That seems... excessive.
And besides that, he's a child.
Wtf is up with that judge?

[KQ]

That seems... excessive.
And besides that, he's a child.
Wtf is up with that judge?

Over 48,000 acres burned.

The estimated cost so far doesn’t include $500,000 the Oregon Department of Transportation has spent on tree removal and rock scaling, among other things. It also doesn’t include $5.6 million the Oregon State Fire Marshal has spent on firefighting efforts.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office spent most of its money on personnel and response vehicles. About 90 percent of the $5.6 million it has so far spent went to paying for those resources. The rest went to camp costs, gas and repairs.

Security, showers, meals and facilities for firefighters cost $160 a day, said Mariana Ruiz-Temple, the chief deputy state fire marshal. At the fire’s peak, 300 people from two states were working the blaze.

The Oregon Department of Transportation expects the $500,000 it has spent so far to increase as crews continue to assess the repairs needed along the Historic Columbia River Highway.

Another cost yet to be measured: the physical damage to the Gorge and its impact for years to come.




This Oct. 8, 2017 file photo shows the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks, Ore., over a month after the Eagle Creek fire


This Oct. 8, 2017, file photo, shows the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks, Ore. The photo was taken from a helicopter over a month after the Eagle Creek fire first erupted Sept. 2, 2017.


The Eagle Creek Fire continues to burn on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks and the Bridge of the Gods, late Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017.

[stalefish3169]

Over 48,000 acres burned.

The estimated cost so far doesn’t include $500,000 the Oregon Department of Transportation has spent on tree removal and rock scaling, among other things. It also doesn’t include $5.6 million the Oregon State Fire Marshal has spent on firefighting efforts.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office spent most of its money on personnel and response vehicles. About 90 percent of the $5.6 million it has so far spent went to paying for those resources. The rest went to camp costs, gas and repairs.

Security, showers, meals and facilities for firefighters cost $160 a day, said Mariana Ruiz-Temple, the chief deputy state fire marshal. At the fire’s peak, 300 people from two states were working the blaze.

The Oregon Department of Transportation expects the $500,000 it has spent so far to increase as crews continue to assess the repairs needed along the Historic Columbia River Highway.

Another cost yet to be measured: the physical damage to the Gorge and its impact for years to come.




This Oct. 8, 2017 file photo shows the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks, Ore., over a month after the Eagle Creek fire


This Oct. 8, 2017, file photo, shows the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks, Ore. The photo was taken from a helicopter over a month after the Eagle Creek fire first erupted Sept. 2, 2017.


The Eagle Creek Fire continues to burn on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge near Cascade Locks and the Bridge of the Gods, late Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017.

This was a couple of weeks ago. All is not lost.

The kid fucked up, but I don't think anyone died. Fine seems a bit heavy for a teenager IMO, even with the 10 year deal. Lloyd Blankfein never got fined like that for the fire he started and he could cover 36 million easy.

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[splat]

Jeeezuz, the fine is fukking symbolic. Like art shirk said, the kid keeps his nose clean and files a motion in ten years and it will pretty much all be forgotten. But because damages, potential deaths averted and the cost were so humongous, and because so many people are so stupid - an example had to be set. The penalties had to create a big enough example to garner the attention of the next potential forest killer.

[Rideski]

^^^ Ditto


Pretty picture. Gotta love that rainfall you have.

I think it's a statement from the judge. What dif does it make if its 2 mil vs 30 mil? None realistically speaking?
More headlines? Don't start fires? The Hayman fire fucked things up in 2002 that are still fucked up today, but we don't get your rainfall.