Arsons and Wildfires
With all the talk about wildfires in California and the Northwest these past several months I thought I would look at fire prevention and specifically at arson’s. Although we haven’t heard much about the causes of some of the biggest blazes this year, over time it is estimated that about 30% of all forest fires were started on purpose.
Arson investigations can be some of the most difficult timber security cases to solve and prosecute for two primary reasons. In the first place, the crime scene is usually isolated and remote, so finding witnesses to an arson event is rare. Secondly, most of the physical evidence is generally consumed by the fire and/or unintentionally destroyed by firefighters putting out the blaze.
