services - Idyllwild Town Crier

Page 24 - Idyllwild Town Crier, March 26, 2009
Oyler
Continued from page 1
After the jury’s first charge and finding
for the death sentence were read aloud,
a quietness within the courtroom went
unchallenged. Neither outbursts of elation
nor despair surged through the filled
room.
The clerk of the court polled each
juror, and each responded “yes.”
Unlike after all his other court appearances,
this time Oyler was quickly shackled
and then whisked from the courtroom
back to his county jail cell. There, he will
wait the sentencing hearing before being
transferred to prison and the automatic
appeals process that accompanies a death
sentence.
Outside the courthouse after the final
judgment, people spoke freely about their
feelings and the results of the trial. Both
the victims’ and Oyler’s families, as well
as federal, state and county firefighters
and their leaders, the district attorney,
the prosecutor, and Riverside County
Board of Supervisors Chair Jeff Stone,
3rd District supervisor, all came to the
podium, adjusted the microphone, smoothed their hair
and spoke. Jurors hugged the families and remained in
the background.
“The autopsy pictures were terrible,” said juror number
five. “Seeing those pictures of the firefighters, someone
has to pay for this.”
Oyler’s life was deemed payment for the violent destruction
and havoc he manufactured. The jurors took
more than a week to determine his guilt. The process
was meticulous and thorough, according to the same
juror.
Maria Loutzenhiser addresses
the media and public
after the trial and penalty
announcement of Raymond
Lee Oyler. Loutzenhiser’s
husband, Mark, was one of
the five men who perished
in the Esperanza Fire. She
said she was glad Oyler
could start no more fires.
In the background are Rod
Pacheco, Riverside County
district attorney, and Laurie
Rosenthal, San Jacinto
district ranger.
Photo by J.P. Crumrine
“When you tie all the things together,
look at all the timelines, and the fire [Esperanza
Fire] time and follow it to the end,
there was no other conclusion,” he said.
“Especially when he lied about the alibi.”
“Raymond Oyler is an arsonist and his
destruction is over,” said Riverside County
Fire Chief John Hawkins, also the CalFire
Riverside unit chief. “Their families experienced
a loss none of us could imagine.
Our communities are safe because of your
[the jury’s] decision.”
“We must do all in our powers to stop
arson fires,” admonished Jeanne Wade
Evans, San Bernardino National Forest
supervisor. She described Oyler’s arson
fires as the equivalent of domestic terrorism.
Jason McKay’s mother articulated the
lesson she wants everyone to learn from
this tragedy.
“A lot of Ray Oyler’s family knew he
was starting fires. If someone had come
forward in May [2006], we wouldn’t be
standing here now and they wouldn’t
lose him,” implored Bonnie McKay. “To
the other arsonists out there, how many
families hear this and talk to them”
“Everybody loses. We’ve cried a million
tears,” said Jonnie Marriott, grandmother of one
of Oyler’s grandchildren. “I’ve never seen a more noble
person than Mrs. McKay. This is as tragic as it gets.
Everybody has suffered in these three long years.”
“I want to thank all the jurors for putting an end
to this,” said Maria Loutzenhiser, Mark’s widow. “Oyler
is in jail and can’t do this again.
“I pray for Oyler’s family to find peace and comfort
in the verdict,” she continued. “I’m happy justice was
served and we can move on.”
J.P. Crumrine can be reached at jp@towncrier.com.
Ambulance
Continued from page 1
meeting with good feelings.
“The meeting went very
well. We’ll end up with good
relations,” said EMS Director
Bruce Barton. “There was good
communication between the
two [IFPD and CSA 38]. We’re
really not that far apart.”
The next step, according
to Barton, is drafting a new
contract, and getting IFPD’s
approval and then the Board
of Supervisors’ for CSA 38.
IFDP Fire Chief Steve
Kunkle said the meeting clarified
CSA 38’s funding sources
for him. He did not realize
the parcel fee on Pine Cove
properties was initiated to fund
the ambulance services and was
part of its entire budget.
“There didn’t seem be any
issue with [our] service. If
it is just about funding, we
should speak,” he said. “If we’re
outpacing their ability to fund
it, maybe we can do the same
thing as Proposition 13.”
Kunkle was suggesting that
if the IFPD costs were increasing
at a faster rate than CSA 38
revenues, then perhaps some
cap or limits similar to Proposition
13 might be negotiated.
“They agreed that if our
revenues grow 2 percent per
year, and their costs increase
4 percent per year, eventually
they’ll outstrip us,” said
Thomas McCullough, CSA 38
Advisory Council member.
McCullough wants to understand
how IFPD’s costs
change if the response time
was “best effort” rather than
under 12 minutes, or if IFPD
did not serve the Pine Cove
vicinity. Kunkle said “best effort”
was a criterion that would
create more problems than
solutions.
Kunkle also suggested that
IFPD wanted to clarify some
issues such as the definition
of a fully staffed ambulance.
“I think there is a miscommunication
or misunderstanding
about this; the language needs
to be clear,” he stated.
He also was unsure if the
CSA 38 members were requesting
a full-time ambulance
stationed in Pine Cove. If so,
he estimated that would cost
more than three times the
current annual cost of about
$90,000.
“We know we need [the
ambulance],” said Marge Muir,
the other CSA 38 Advisory
Council member present. “But
we want the best cost and best
service. [IFPD] can’t staff two
ambulances full-time.”
J.P. Crumrine can be reached
at jp@towncrier.com.
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