YARNELL, Ariz. - An attorney for the Yarnell homeowners whose homes were destroyed by a wildfire in 2013 is citing a 15th century English common law in an effort to give them a chance to sue the state.
The original suit was thrown out after a trial judge ruled the state had no duty to protect the owners of adjacent property, since lightning sparked the fire on nearby state trust land.
But David Abney is arguing in the Court of Appeals that common law principle states that if a fire starts on your property and spreads to that of your neighbor, you are responsible. He concedes Arizona courts have not agreed with this theory but says it makes sense since the homeowners could not keep the fire confined to state land.
“The state has the right to enter onto its own land and keep anybody else off that it wants. And the state has claimed it is the sole wildfire fighting force in the state of Arizona,” Abney said.
Abney says if given the chance he’ll prove to a jury the state was negligent. The fire destroyed 120 homes and resulted in the deaths of 19 firefighters.