Judge W. Charles Morgan this morning upheld the recommendation of the jurors and sentenced Raymond Lee Oyler to death in the Esperanza fire case. Oyler was found guilty on March 6 of five counts of murder and 37 counts of arson and using an arson device in southern California in 2006. One of those fires was the Esperanza fire that killed the 5-person crew of Engine 57 of the San Bernardino National Forest.

The judge had the option of death or life in prison without parole for Oyler.

Family members of the victims were allowed to speak at the sentencing hearing. The mother of one of the firefighters said: “I’ve tried to forgive Oyler, but I can’t”.

The firefighters that died were Capt. Mark Loutzenhiser, 43, of Idyllwild; Jason McKay, 27, of Apple Valley; Jess McLean, 27, of Beaumont; Pablo Cerda, 23, of Fountain Valley; and Daniel Hoover-Najera, 20, of San Jacinto. The fire burned 43,000 acres and destroyed 39 homes.

There will be an automatic appeal of the death sentence to the California Supreme Court.

UPDATE: Fire Department Network News has a video report about the sentence.

Raymond Lee Oyler. Photo: Press-Enterprise

Raymond Lee Oyler will be sentenced today to either death or life in prison without parole, the only two options available to Riverside County Superior Court Judge W. Charles Morgan.

On March 6 Oyler was convicted of 5 counts of murder and 37 counts of arson and using an arson device in southern California in 2006. One of those fires was the Esperanza fire that killed the 5-person crew of Engine 57 of the San Bernardino National Forest. The firefighters that died were Capt. Mark Loutzenhiser, 43, of Idyllwild; Jason McKay, 27, of Apple Valley; Jess McLean, 27, of Beaumont; Pablo Cerda, 23, of Fountain Valley; and Daniel Hoover-Najera, 20, of San Jacinto. The fire burned 43,000 acres and destroyed 39 homes.

During the sentencing hearing which begins this morning at 8:30 in Dept. 32 in Riverside Superior Court, about 10 relatives of the firefighters, 2 for each victim, will be allowed to speak, along with members of Oyler’s family.

If Oyler is sentenced to death, it will be automatically appealed to the state supreme court.

The trial of the moron who started the fire that resulted in the deaths of the crew of Engine 57 is virtually over except for the judge’s decison about accepting or not accepting the recommendation of the jury to execute Raymond Oyler.  But even more investigations will occur now, which could have significant implications for firefighters. 

Here is an excerpt from the Press-Enterprise:

More than two years after flames trapped and killed five U.S. Forest Service firefighters on a Riverside County hillside, federal officials are preparing to release the findings of an investigation into what led to the deaths.

Their report, which could lead to criminal charges against firefighters or command officials who battled the Esperanza Fire, comes on the heels of the conviction of Raymond Lee Oyler, the arsonist now facing the death penalty for setting the blaze.

In congressional testimony last week, U.S. Agriculture Department Inspector General Phyllis Fong, whose office conducted the investigation, said she expects to issue the report by the end of the month.

The investigation has focused on the actions and decisions made by fire personnel as they attacked the swirling 43,000-acre blaze near Cabazon in October of 2006. The crew of Forest Service Engine 57 arrived at the fire in support of Cal Fire, the lead agency on the fire. Ninety-foot flames overran the crew as they fought to save a lone, unoccupied home in the small community of Twin Pines.

Forest Service and Cal Fire officials declined to comment on the report before its release. Two previous federal investigations — one conducted jointly by the Forest Service and Cal Fire, the other by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration — questioned firefighters’ decision to stay and fight the flames.

Firefighter union officials said they hoped the new findings would focus on preventing a repeat of the tragedy rather than placing blame.

“There’s still that concern that someone is going to get drug through the dirt,” said Casey Judd, manager for the Federal Wildland Fire Service Association. “If we’re going to learn something, that’s great. If we’re going to try to find someone to blame, it’s not so great.”

The probe was required by a 2002 law (editor: PL 107-203) mandating the office investigate deaths of federal firefighters who are killed in burnovers or entrapments. Similar investigations led to charges against two fire commanders in the deaths of federal firefighters in Washington State and Idaho.

The law was created after the 2001 Thirtymile Fire, which killed four firefighters in Washington. U.S. Forest Service supervisor Ellreese N. Daniels was indicted on charges of involuntary manslaughter and lying to investigators.

More…

Thanks Dick

Wednesday afternoon the jury in the trial of Raymond Lee Oyler recommended that he be put to death. The judge set the formal sentencing date for June 5.

Oyler was found guilty on 42 counts of first degree murder and arson, including setting the October 26, 2006, Esperanza fire which burned 41,000 acres near Cabazon, California and resulted in the deaths of the five-person crew of Engine 57 from the San Bernardino National Forest. Killed were Capt. Mark Allen Loutzenhiser, 43, Jason Robert McKay, 27, Jess Edward McLean, 27, Daniel Hoover-Najera, 20, and Pablo Cerda, 24.