Suspect in California wildfire could face death penalty
Thursday, November 2, 2006 | 4:13 PM ET
CBC News
A man suspected of starting a wildfire last week in Southern California that killed five firefighters could face the death penalty, a prosecutor said Thursday.
Authorities filed arson and murder charges Thursday against Raymond Lee Oyler, 36, who is already under arrest on suspicion of setting two other wildfires over the summer.
Four U.S. Forest Service firefighters died shortly after the blaze began Thursday when flames overran them as they tried to protect homes in the area. A fifth firefighter died Tuesday evening.
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"It is important to note that the charges we are filing today include the possibility of life in prison without the possibility of parole … as well as death," Riverside County district attorney-elect Rod Pacheco said Thursday in a news conference.
Prosecutors would decide whether to seek the death penalty after a "careful and sober review" of the evidence and the suspect's background, he added.
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Thursday, November 2, 2006 | 4:13 PM ET
CBC News
A man suspected of starting a wildfire last week in Southern California that killed five firefighters could face the death penalty, a prosecutor said Thursday.
Authorities filed arson and murder charges Thursday against Raymond Lee Oyler, 36, who is already under arrest on suspicion of setting two other wildfires over the summer.
Four U.S. Forest Service firefighters died shortly after the blaze began Thursday when flames overran them as they tried to protect homes in the area. A fifth firefighter died Tuesday evening.
>
"It is important to note that the charges we are filing today include the possibility of life in prison without the possibility of parole … as well as death," Riverside County district attorney-elect Rod Pacheco said Thursday in a news conference.
Prosecutors would decide whether to seek the death penalty after a "careful and sober review" of the evidence and the suspect's background, he added.
>
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