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190. Boy Starts Huge Fire
A ten-year-old boy confessed to his parents that
was playing with matches on a windy day
October in southern California. The Santa Ana winds
howling that day, and his carelessness resulted in
Witch fire. That fire destroyed 18,000 acres of
and 12 homes. The total damage and the
of firefighting efforts were estimated at $25 million.
, his parents’ house was untouched by the fire.
authorities did not immediately announce what they would
to the boy or his parents. An official
the district attorney’s office said that, probably, no
charges would be filed. But the parents would
be liable for civil charges. That is, victims
sue for their losses and rebuilding costs. Suing
middle-class family for millions would be the easy
, though; collecting the millions would be unlikely.
Homeowners
on what should be done. “I don’t have
house anymore,” said John Ritter. “It will take
least two years to build a new house,
my insurance is only going to pay about
the cost of the new house. Ordinarily, I
say that the boy and his parents ought
be put in jail for at least 10
. But because their house didn’t burn down, I
the law should just allow me to trade
with them. They can have my burned-down house,
I can move into their house. That’s fair
for me.”
“We all make mistakes, especially when
’re young,” said Michael Richards, another homeowner whose house
down. “I remember setting my sister on fire
I was about 10. I didn’t mean to
it, of course, and she jumped into the
, so she was okay. But it could have
a terrible accident. I think the poor boy
learned a valuable lesson. People should forgive, rebuild,
get on with their lives.”
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