Sacramento, CA — A Mother Lode State Senator touts a bill that enhances the penalty for arsonists. Senator Tom Berryhill authored the SB930 bill that has passed the Senate Public Safety Committee. The legislation has the arsonist paying for property damage including the costs of fighting the fire.
Senator Berryhill says, “Whether it is your house, your property or, as in the case of the Rim Fire, our precious forests. I want arsonists to know they are going to be held accountable for not only the damages they do to property but for the cost of fighting the fire.”
The bill would reinstate a statute that expired this January. That statute defined aggravated arson to include damages that exceed $6.5 million. Berryhill’s bill extends the statute to January 1, 2019 and adjusts the amount to $7 million due to inflation.
Click here to view the entire proposed legislation.
This post was last modified on 03/26/2014 4:17 pm
Written by Tracey Petersen.
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