Man Who Set Devastating CA Fire Released from Prison

June 2, 2016
The 2014 fire in Weed destroyed 157 buildings.

The 26-year-old man sentenced last year to three years in prison for starting the 2014 Boles Fire in Weed that destroyed 157 buildings — most of them homes — has been released from prison after serving his time.

Ronald Beau Marshall was released April 11 from California State Prison, Solano, in Vacaville, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Corrections said Wednesday.

He was released to the Siskiyou County Probation Office under AB 109 provisions, but where he's living has not been disclosed.

A spokeswoman for the Siskiyou County Probation Office in Yreka said Marshall is not living in Weed.

Marshall, a former Weed resident, was sentenced on July 28 to three years in prison under a plea bargain after he pleaded guilty to recklessly starting the devastating fire.

He was required to serve 50 percent of his prison sentence before being eligible for parole.

Marshall, who was booked into Siskiyou County Jail on Oct. 11, 2014, had all the time he served in jail as well as good behavior credits applied toward his prison sentence.

Siskiyou County District Attorney Kirk Andrus said in an email to the Record Searchlight that he and his office were notified last month of Marshall's release.

As the community of Weed continues to rebuild and recover from the fire, Marshall's release from prison dismayed some residents unaware that he's no longer in prison.

"Our system has failed us once again," said Gordon Howard, owner of Gordon's Barber Shop on Main Street.

Howard, who was evacuated from his business and shop due to the fire, said he did not know that Marshall had been released from prison. And, he said, none of his customers ever mentioned it to him.

Prosecutors initially believed Marshall intentionally set the Boles Fire to get revenge on the managers of his former apartment complex but abandoned that theory after the investigation into that tip didn't turn anything up.

Prosecutors then turned their investigation to the reckless handling of a warming or cooking fire Marshall had started near the complex.

He was homeless and told investigators that he tried to put the fire out but was unable to do so.

Originally charged with three felony counts of arson and related enhancements in connection to the fire, Marshall later pleaded guilty to recklessly starting the fire.

The Boles Fire broke out Sept. 15, 2014, and, fueled by strong winds, tore a 516-acre swath through the middle of the small Siskiyou County city, leaving scores of residents homeless. It damaged a building at Weed Elementary School and forced the temporary shutdown of the Roseburg Forest Products mill, one of Siskiyou County's largest employers.

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©2016 the Redding Record Searchlight (Redding, Calif.)

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