A US man who started a wildfire that killed 12 endangered California condors and seriously injured a firefighter has been sentenced to 24 years in prison. Prosecutors say Ivan Gomez, 31, set the Big Sur Dolan fire in August 2020 while illegally cultivating cannabis in the Los Padres National Forest. The blaze spread across 125,000 acres of forest and was not contained for more than four months. It destroyed 14 structures and an 80-acre condor sanctuary. The facility - built in 1997 to release condors bred in captivity into the wild - was empty at the time but a dozen of the giant vultures are said to have died as the fire spread through the forest. The captive-breeding programme inside Los Padres was part of a last-ditch conservation effort in the 1980s, when only 22 condors were left in the wild. The species' numbers have since grown. The Dolan fire, on California's central coast, also nearly took the lives of 14 firefighters after their station was overrun by flames and they were forced to seek emergency shelter. A fire captain was seriously injured and two others were also taken to hospital for burns and smoke inhalation. California condors, like this one seen in 2012, are critically endangered According to the county district attorney's office, Gomez had been arrested after state park officers spotted the fire and received reports of a man throwing rocks at vehicles on a nearby highway. He is said to have been shirtless, sweating and carrying several lighters that matched those found at the fire's point of origin. Gomez confessed to officers that he had an illegal cannabis grow in the forest and it had started the fire. The fire was not contained until New Year's Eve in 2020. On Wednesday, Gomez was found guilty on 16 felony counts, including arson, throwing rocks at vehicles, cultivating cannabis and 12 counts of cruelty to animals. He will serve his time in state prison.
wasnt enough in my opinion,at first he claimed insanity if i remember right, suprise me it didnt go federal isnt that park federal land?
I posted this a there was a 'dubious cannabis link' ..but I agree, maybe he had a choice as even in europe we know the difference between state and federal ' after all why would a gorilla grower need to make a fire ?
that was my point,even at night in cali ,nah it was intentional ,but what reasoning could one have is my question, folks do some really terrible things to make the evening news ,when you start a fire knowing what the outcome is from years of history destroying every thing in it path for months, life man that would have been the sentence,but he does have to fill prison shoes and folks pay for favors all the time. this wasnt a judgement it was a slap on the wrist,the judge he will face isnt on this earth
i been to state ,i would rather do federal ,at least i could travel the states for a change of air. texas is boiling hot man,just since 2010 they put big fans on the end of the runs, only ac it had was the hospital,i dont know were folk come up with ac in the prison system,but could have changed since then
you can get degrees in state prison ,but if you got busted and convicted in that state ,chances are you already been to most of the state,they dont let you go were you please you go to diagnostic facilty and the crime your mentality your previous arrest all that crap is sit in stone and most likely you gonna wind up on a hoe squad ,hoeing cotton in the middle of 5 thousand acres with 12 squads all sporting texas aggies,a big ass hoe haaha field boss's and dogs, dogs be loving convict meat bright side is from below 40 degrees to 82 degrees you dont swing that aggie,all in between you hit it take a step hit it take a step that joker in front of you ,you might hate ,but dont swing that aggie on um unless you just want suicide by high rider,you might screw around in that building,but outside that fence,your ass is the field boss and they will cut you down like a dog
there has been weed in the system for decades,just not legal hahah,but hey i wouldnt doubt it , in texas there is no smoking at all ,so even if they did legalize it wouldnt happen in jails or prisons, they even file state level charges against you if the catch you with tobacco. back in 90 's you could smoke,in the 80's the state gave you tabacco was floor sweep but it was free
Don't want to start an argument with anyone, just stating that any type of judicial 'parity'(don't know what word to use) is broken in the US. This guy got 24 years for killing birds. A local politician recently got 24 years for corruption. Yet regularly people who have committed murder, manslaughter, and similar crimes get 7 years. Or 10 years, or 12. In one place you can have ounces of weed with no problem, yet step across a border and 1 joint can get you a year. I don't have an answer and not suggesting one. But the judicial system is severely bent, if not broken.
i dont know ,millions of dollar every year as long as i been alive fighting wild fires over in that neck of the woods warrant more than a bird roast,but you may be right. since you add polticans ,if san fransico is pelosi hood ,and the fire would have gone there what and how many years would he had got, not only to mention no concern for human life as mentioned above. that said i agree to no argument,im the first to bark a corrupt government as you already know, but i will say you are blinded in thinking it was just birds, with respect i say that too,if the fire gets out of hand them mountains and praries will flash as if it was nothing as it does every year like clock work. lot of things are just material objects ,like homes ,vehicles , things like that,but animals and humans aint material there living things, so imo only 24 years is just a slap, the same stands for the judical system ,it didnt just get broken when president lost races,been like that for decades even centuries,it isnt really broken when you allow it to happen, this joker was proud at arrest when he admitted he did it,then tried to play the crazy card, there was a physc evalution done at trail and tax payer expense also im sure. so 24 years is just 24 years in the joint for a homeless man and he will do it again when they release him in a few years to go back. what is prison when you already live on the streets,it aint nothing but a hotel my brother room ,board and three squares
20 years seems the norm even in Australia CFS volunteer of 35 years was drunk when he lit devastating bushfire, court told but often their is a high body count
I'm sorry but I'm not angry about the pot, I'm angry about the condors he destroyed. I say give him 40 years to think about it. He has to be one stupid S.O.B
He shoulda used the Johnny Cash defense.... Johnny Cash accidentally started a wildfire that destroyed over 500 acres and killed 49 endangered condors. "In June 1965, his camper caught fire during a fishing trip with his nephew Damon Fielder in Los Padres National Forest in California, triggering a forest fire that burnt several hundred acres and nearly killed Cash. Cash claimed that the fire was caused by sparks from a defective exhaust system on his camper, but Fielder thinks that Cash started a fire to stay warm and in his drugged condition failed to notice the fire getting out of control. When the judge asked Cash why he did it, Cash said, “I didn’t do it, my truck did, and it’s dead, so you can’t question it.” The fire destroyed 508 acres (206 ha), burning the foliage off three mountains and driving off forty-nine of the refuge’s 53 endangered condors. Cash was unrepentant and claimed, “I don’t care about your damn yellow buzzards.” The federal government sued him and was awarded $125,172 ($939,914 in 2016 dollars). Cash eventually settled the case and paid $82,001.He said he was the only person ever sued by the government for starting a forest fire." https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016...-condors/?edg-c=1&Exc_D_LessThanPoint002_p1=1
Have to agree heavily on this. 24 years for killing some endangered birds but what does someone get for molesting a kid and ruining their life? like 5 years? System is a pile of dogshit. Less important but I feel like there's also a possible debate about the morality of treating these birds with such high regard because they're endangered, but ok just fuck every other animal then? Why because us people want them around and want to say "look at us we restored this species" and feel good about it? And the way we show that is by throwing away a dudes life? What a load of shit
This right here, there is a lot of leeway in most laws for sentencing, and the Judge has extraordinary freedom in the amount of punishment they sentence a convicted person to. There needs to be better judicial review and accountability. My experience, when I was 17 two friends were heading to a camp out party, I had to work that night and told them I would stop by later. They got pulled over for "erratic driving" and the cops subsequently found 2 joints and a pint of liqour in their car. Both boys white, same age, same high school, local boys. One of them had a father who was a judge in that district, the other boy's dad was just a construction worker. The judges son got his case dismissed, the other boy got legal fees, restricted license, a $3,000 fine, 200 hours of community service, and a bullshit lecture by his judge on how if he were just one year older the judge would have thrown him in Jail if he could. While I believe "Equal justice under the law" is not a prize society will ever be able to hold in their hand and claim "we fixed it!" it should be a horizon we are constantly journeying toward.