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Jurors in the Esperanza Fire trial have reached a verdict

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 04:20 PM PST

Guilty! on Dozens of criminal counts including five counts of murder!

Raymond Lee Oyler was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, 23 counts of arson and 17 counts of using an incendiary device for fires set between May 16, 2006 and Oct. 26, 2006.

A jury has convicted Raymond Lee Oyler an auto mechanic of five murder counts in a 2006 California arson wildfire.
The Esperanza Fire overran a federal firefighting engine crew killing five.

Esperanza Fire trial: Raymond Lee Oyler is convicted of settting the 2006 wildfire near Cabazon that killed five firefighters from San Bernardino National Forest Engine 57 .

Jurors announced guilty verdicts Friday on five murder counts in the case of a man accused of setting 23 Riverside County brush fires, including one that killed five firefighters.

At least a dozen current and retired fire personnel filled the left side of the courtroom. They were seated directly behind relatives of the five fallen USFS crew members.

Oyler, 38, faces a possible death sentence for causing the blaze that killed Capt. Mark Allen Loutzenhiser, 43, and firefighters Jason Robert McKay, 27, Jess Edward McLean, 27, Daniel Hoover-Najera, 20, and Pablo Cerda, 24, who were overcome by flames while defending a home near Twin Pines.

The crew of San Bernardino National Forest Engine 57 was overrun by the October Esperanza fire while defending an isolated home in the San Jacinto Mountains, about 90 miles east of Los Angeles.

CAL FIRE NEWS - Interview - Cal Fire captain anointed planning commissioner

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 03:26 PM PST

Congratulations:

Alex appointed to Grover Planning Commission

Greg Alex was appointed by the Grover Beach City Council to fill a vacancy on the Planning Commission, not only for the unexpired term ending May 31 but also an additional full four-year term.

An 18-month resident of Grover Beach, Alex is a captain with Cal Fire. As an engine company officer, he has conducted commercial and residential fire inspections, and he has served as the Emergency Command Center duty officer and Geographical Information System coordinator.

He is also currently studying to become a certified planning professional through the American Institute of Certified Planners.

The vacancy was created when former Commissioner Debbie Peterson was elected to the City Council in November.

In addition to appointing Alex, the council agreed to consider candidate Jeffrey Lee for a commission vacancy expected in May or June without Lee going through a screening committee interview again.

Source: timespressrecorder.com - Link

Sacramento Metro Hazmat: Tax returns had yellow powder

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 12:47 PM PST

SACRAMENTO, CA - Fifty state Franchise Tax Board employees in Sacramento were evacuated while fire crews investigated two suspicious envelopes found there Friday morning.

According to Captain Rusty Dupray with the Sacramento Metro Fire Department, two envelopes containing tax returns had yellow powder on the outside of them and had burn marks when they were discovered at 8:47 this morning at the tax offices at 9646 Butterfield Way.

Dupray said the employee who handled the envelopes and two other nearby workers complained of headaches and their supervisors then evacuated the immediate area and called 911.

"Fifty workers were evacuated while our hazmat team suited up, entered the building and took possession of the envelopes," said Dupray. "We took the envelopes into our fully-equipped mobil hazmat lab and conducted tests."

Those test took about 20 minutes and according to Dupray came back neutral. "In other words there was nothing dangerous," he said.

No one was hurt and emergency responders determined employees could safely return to their offices. The employees were allowed back to work at about 10:45 a.m.

Source: News10.net - Link

Bonehead call in New Hampshire - Cops posing as Firefighters

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 11:23 AM PST

PFFNH President David Lang, Lebanon Fire Chief & President of NH Association of Fire Chiefs Chris Chistopolous, and Seacoast Fire Chief President & Portsmouth Fire Chief Chris LeClaire discuss the Newport NH Police Officers diguising themselves as firefighters to make an arrest at the NH Legislative Office Building on March 5 2008.

Bonehead call by Fire Chief - Lets erode the public trust and get Firefighters killed.
Sounds like it's time for a New Police Chief and Fire Chief, Both the fire chief and police chief should be fired for this action.

"Police officers dressed as firefighters and using a fire truck entered the building and activated the fire alarm to evacuate residents in a safe manner so as not to bring attention to the pending arrest of Miller," Newport Police Chief David Hoyt said in a news release.

"We need to have the trust of the public when we respond," said David Lang of the Professional Firefighters of New Hampshire. "If we allow others to co-opt our image, trade on our good name, no matter the circumstances, we'd create a breach of trust with the public that will be impossible for us to repair,"

Faux Firefighters(Police) falsely set off building fire alarm system!.

Police use firefighter fake-out to arrest man

By KRISTEN SENZ
Union Leader Correspondent
Thursday, Mar. 5, 2009

NEWPORT – Disguised as firefighters, police officers from several communities staged a phony building evacuation Tuesday to arrest a Newport man with a violent past, according to Newport police.

Matthew Miller, 34, of Sunapee Street, allegedly pointed a shotgun at a police officer's chest and face when the officer responded to a noise complaint at Miller's apartment around 10 p.m. Tuesday, police said.

The officer had knocked on Miller's door, and when he asked who was there, the officer responded, "Newport police," according to a news release.

The officer was alone and couldn't safely draw his weapon or react to the threat at the time, police said, other than to convince Miller to put his weapon on the floor. The officer then left, but not before taking note of several other weapons and a small child in the apartment.

The officer found no outstanding arrest warrants for Miller, but did uncover a violent, criminal past that included a felony conviction, making Miller's possession of a firearm illegal, police said.

Police obtained arrest and search warrants for Miller and his Sunapee Street residence and called in officers from Claremont, Sunapee and Goshen to help execute them.

The Newport Fire Department also was alerted in case medical care was needed.

"Police officers dressed as firefighters and using a fire truck entered the building and activated the fire alarm to evacuate residents in a safe manner so as not to bring attention to the pending arrest of Miller," Newport Police Chief David Hoyt said in a news release.

As residents evacuated the building, police officers saw Miller in his apartment window with a one-year-old child in his arms. When he opened his apartment door, the faux firefighters seized the child from his arms and took him into custody without incident, Hoyt said.

During a subsequent search of Miller's apartment, police allegedly found a shotgun, a pistol, rifle scopes, body armor, night vision equipment and other weapon accessories, according to police.

Miller was arraigned yesterday in Newport District Court on charges of criminal threatening and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He is being held at the Sullivan County House of Correction on $15,000 cash bail.

Source: Union Leader - Link
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Followup story:

Fire Officials Criticize Police For Impersonating Firefighters

Union Says Impersonation Could Erode Public's Trust Of Firefighters

NEWPORT, N.H. -- Firefighters are criticizing Newport police after they disguised themselves as firefighters to take a man into custody who allegedly threatened an officer with a gun.

Newport police said Matthew Miller pointed a shotgun at an officer responding to his apartment on a noise complaint Wednesday night. With no backup, the officer left, but hours later, police returned.

Dressed as firefighters, they were able to take Miller into custody without incident."This was the best possible scenario," said Police Chief David Hoyt. "It worked, and it was very quick. It was not harmful to anybody."Hoyt said it stood behind the tactics his department used.

Police spoke to the Newport fire chief, who allowed them to borrow a fire truck and uniforms.The chiefs from both departments went to Miller's building, and the officers, dressed as firefighters, went to Miller's door. They told him there was a carbon monoxide issue and arrested him as he came out."If we as police didn't handle it correctly, it was going to be disastrous for innocent people," Hoyt said.

Nobody in the building was evacuated, and no alarms were set off. But the tactics drew a strong response from other firefighters."We need to have the trust of the public when we respond," said David Lang of the Professional Firefighters of New Hampshire.

The union called the tactics dangerous."If we allow others to co-opt our image, trade on our good name, no matter the circumstances, we'd create a breach of trust with the public that will be impossible for us to repair," Lang said.

Hoyt said he never intended to break the public's trust."It's not to degrade those professions, to make those professions unsafe in any way," he said. "It's to accomplish our mission safely without causing harm to anybody."Newport Fire Chief Wayne Conroy said a lot of thought went into the plan, and his help let police make the arrest safely in 90 seconds."To be able to say that firefighters aren't trusted is definitely not the case of why I did this," Conroy said.

Lang said he and other firefighters realize that police officers also face dangers in the job, but he called on other police and fire leaders to not condone the impersonation of firefighters.

Source: WMUR - Link
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Official Firefighters Union response:

Fire Service Leaders condemn the impersonation of fire fighters

Updated On: Mar 05, 2009 (19:04:00)

WATCH THE PRESS VIDEO - CLICK HERE

The Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire and NH Association of Fire Chiefs together denounced the act of police officers acting as fire fighters.

Please view the attached press release below in a pdf format and watch the video posted in the link above. You do not need to be a member to view this page.

Download:

press release.pdf March 5 2008 Press Conference

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Prison sentence for Sayre wildfire looters

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 09:46 AM PST

Prison in burglary of home evacuated for wildfire

SAN FERNANDO, Calif. — Two women were sentenced to prison Thursday for burglarizing a home in a Southern California neighborhood that had been evacuated during a wildfire last year.

Sabrina Devens, 32, of Sherman Oaks was given a four-year term and Gina Samantha Rios, 19, of North Hollywood was sentenced to two years by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Coen.

Both women pleaded no contest to a single felony count of first-degree residential burglary. Two other counts against Devens were dismissed in a plea agreement.

They were caught on Nov. 15, 2008, by a resident returning home from an evacuation of the Porter Ranch area that was ordered because of the huge Sayre Fire.

The district attorney's office said the victim found Rios using a cell phone in front of his home, and then saw Devens walk to the front of the residence from the rear yard.

Police officers patrolling the area witnessed the confrontation and investigated, discovering property belonging to the victim and his wife in the women's possession.

The Sayre Fire burned about 17 square miles of brushlands along the northern rim of Los Angeles, destroying nearly 500 residences.

Source: Sign on San Diego - Link

Esperanza wildfire - Oyler jury deadlocked

Posted: 06 Mar 2009 12:15 PM PST

Update: 03-06-09 Noon - Jurors in the Esperanza Fire trial have reached a verdict

Esperanza Fire trial: Raymond Lee Oyler is accused of setting the 2006 wildfire near Cabazon that killed five firefighters. The verdict will be read at 1:30 p.m.

Oyler jury deadlocked on several charges
Judge says keep trying

The four-man, eight-woman panel weighing Raymond Lee Oyler's fate sent a note to Riverside County Superior Court Judge W. Charles Morgan on Thursday afternoon, asking for guidance on "how to proceed on charges on which we've become deadlocked."

Defendant Raymond Oyler looks back during opening statements of his trial Thursday, Jan 22, 2009, in Riverside, Calif. Oyler, 38, has pleaded not guilty to 45 counts including murder and arson. He could face the death penalty if convicted. (AP Photo, Nick Ut)

RIVERSIDE — Jurors in the arson- murder trial of a former Beaumont mechanic accused of setting 23 brush fires in Riverside County, including a blaze that killed five firefighters, indicated Thursday they were struggling to reach a decision on several charges.

It was unclear which counts are involved.

After reading the question aloud, Morgan turned to the jurors and encouraged them to "step back and examine the issue."

"Step back and it may become clearer if you look at the totality (of the evidence)," Morgan said. "You have to consider everything substantial. We're here to help. Send us notes. Send us requests. Is that clear?"

"Yes," the panelists answered, almost in unison, before they were excused for the day.

The jury will begin its sixth day of deliberations about 9 a.m. today in hopes of overcoming the impasse.

Oyler, 38, is charged with five counts of first-degree murder and 40 counts of arson and being in possession of destructive devices. He faces the death penalty if convicted.

The Oct. 26, 2006, Esperanza wildfire scorched more than 41,000 acres near Cabazon, damaged or destroyed 54 homes and other structures, and killed the crew of U.S. Forest Service Engine 57.

Capt. Mark Allen Loutzenhiser, 43, Jason Robert McKay, 27, Jess Edward McLean, 27, and Daniel Hoover-Najera, 20, perished when flames swept over a home they were trying to defend near Twin Pines. Firefighter Pablo Cerda, 24, died at a hospital a few days later.

Deputy District Attorney Michael Hestrin said just about all the fires Oyler is accused of setting occurred within a 10-mile radius of the defendant's Beaumont apartment, generally when he couldn't be accounted for.

A trucker identified Oyler as a person with whom he spoke at a Cabazon gas station during the first hour of the Esperanza blaze, which started about 1 a.m. The man testified that as Oyler gazed at the raging inferno, he commented that the fire was behaving "just how I thought it would."

Oyler's cousin, Jill Frame, said he boasted about wanting to set a "mountain on fire" in the days leading up to Esperanza.

Items seized from the defendant at the time of his arrest included a slingshot with burn marks in the launch pad and a how-to guide titled "The Anarchist's Cookbook," with references on how to make bombs.

Defense attorney Mark McDonald said the charges are unfounded and that prosecutors want to blame his client for fires that someone else started.

According to McDonald, Oyler was home with fiancee and infant daughter the night the Esperanza fire was lit.

Source: Mydesert.com - Link