Man Convicted of Shoving Flaming Car Into Gully, Igniting Giant Wildfire

A 44-year-old man was convicted Friday of pushing his flaming car into a gully after it had gotten stuck, setting off one of California’s largest-ever wildfires.

Judge Kristen Lucena determined after a three-day trial that the man, Ronnie Stout, was guilty of arson for igniting the Park Fire in July 2024, which burned across 429,603 acres in Northern California — about the size of the city of Houston — and destroyed hundreds of homes and other structures.

No one was killed in the blaze, which was the largest ever to be set intentionally in California and the fourth-largest wildfire of any cause, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The fire began near Chico, in Butte County, about 150 miles northeast of San Francisco, and burned for two months across several counties before it was fully contained.

Because Mr. Stout, who lived in Chico, previously was convicted of two serious felonies, robbery and child molestation, he is subject to California’s “three-strikes” law and faces a minimum of 25 years in prison and could be imprisoned for life. His sentencing is set for October.

Read more: New York Times