GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo.—A jury has acquitted a Carbondale rancher of arson for a wildfire that burned three homes and injured a fisherman.
The jury delivered its verdict Friday in the trial of 61-year-old Larry Gerbaz, charged with two counts of fourth-degree arson. Authorities said he didn’t smother a burning brush pile in April 2008 and high winds revived the flames, which burned 1,000 acres and threatened 100 homes.
One man was burned when he was overrun by flames.
Defense witnesses said they saw other fires burning in the neighborhood around the same time.
Deputy District Attorney Ed Veronda argued that Gerbaz needed to be held accountable for allegedly failing to prevent his controlled burn from triggering a wildfire.
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Information from: The Aspen Times,
