OROVILLE — The man accused of starting the fire that destroyed much of Cohasset last July will be going to trial on arson charges, but probably not until June.
Ronnie Dean Stout II, of Chico, is accused of starting the Park Fire on the afternoon of July 24 by pushing a burning car into a brushy ravine near the Alligator Hole in upper Bidwell Park.
The fire ultimately burned 430,000 acres and more than 700 structures.
The Park Fire on Wednesday, July 24, 2024 in Chico, California. (Sergio Delgado/Enterprise-Record) Sergio Delgado/Enterprise-Record
Friday morning in Butte County Superior Court, Stout waived his right to a preliminary hearing, during which Judge Kristen Lucena would have determined whether there was enough evidence to proceed to trial.
Waiving the hearing clears the way for the case to go to trial, but according to prosecutor Marc Noel, that probably won’t happen until June. Noel cited staff shortages in the District Attorney’s Office and an unusually large number of major cases for the delay.
RELATED: How the Park Fire and other California wildfires get their names
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