Some Corral residents say Brian David Franks got off light for his part in starting the fire; others say his sentencing was fair, indicating that his testimony is invaluable in the case against the four other defendants.
By Olivia Damavandi / Staff Writer
Corral Canyon residents expressed outrage and some acceptance at the sentencing last week in Van Nuys Superior Court of Brian David Franks to five years probation and 300 hours community service for his involvement in the November 2007 Corral Canyon fire.
Armed with before-and-after photos of their torched homes and lost pets, nearly 30 Corral Canyon Fire victims showed up in court last Thursday to witness the sentencing of Franks and to make statements about their losses from the fire.
Franks, 28, had pleaded no contest Oct. 1 to a felony charge of recklessly causing a fire. As part of his plea deal, Franks agreed to be available to testify against the other four defendants in the case.
Superior Court Judge Leslie Dunn also ordered Franks to stay away from the Corral Canyon area (unless he is doing court-supervised community service, which will involve brush clearance and other fire abatement work), and to pay numerous fines.
“I do believe a great injustice was done today by letting Mr. Franks off with 300 hours of community service,” Corral Canyon resident Paul Morra said after the hearing.
The Corral Fire started after a number of individuals built an illegal campfire in a cave on state parkland at the top of Corral Canyon. Embers from the fire sparked flames on the dry hillsides, which were fueled by roaring Santa Ana winds. Detectives found at the scene alcohol containers, food wrappers and bundled fire logs, which they were able to trace to the five men being held accountable.
Before publicly announcing the sentence, Dunn acknowledged the value of Franks’ plea bargain.
“The prosecution has represented to this court that the candid testimony of Franks was essential to them in making their case,” Dunn said. “In exchange, they have offered him a probationary sentence and community service.”
Dunn then said to Franks that if he violates the five-year probation, she would have “no hesitancy” in sentencing him to state prison. (The District Attorney’s Office had said the blaze was started “during and within an area of a state of emergency,” which would require a mandatory state prison sentence if the suspects were convicted.)
The sentencing has been long awaited by both litigants and Corral Canyon residents after it was postponed from its original date of Jan. 26. Though about half of the 30 residents who appeared in court were dissatisfied with the verdict, all said they hope harsher sentences will be imposed on the remaining four suspects.
“Many feel insulted, and rightfully so, with the plea bargain that the DA’s office negotiated with Brian Franks,” Taki wrote in an e-mail to The Malibu Times. “The only way I can console myself to this inappropriate and insufficient sentence is the fact that we can do nothing about the past but we can work to change and influence the future.”
Others, however, felt the punishment was appropriate, including Franks and his lawyer, Doug Goldstein.
“It was fair,” Franks said in an interview with The Malibu Times after the hearing. “I’m really sorry that this [the fire] happened and [it] had to be this way. I wish I could change everything back or turn back time. I am remorseful about what happened.”
Goldstein said, “The prosecution decided rightfully that his [Franks’] culpability was very minimal. The judge recognized that he was the only person trying to put the fires out. I think the sentence was totally appropriate.”
Corral Canyon resident Sara Grisanti, who lost her home in the fire, felt that the value of having Frank’s testimony against the other fire suspects was important.
“The judge was very clear about why she wanted to go along with the plea bargain,” Grisanti said in an interview directly after the sentencing. “I thought it was understandable and [I] am in agreement [with the decision]. We really need him as a witness. We wouldn’t have known what happened in that cave if he hadn’t come forward, even reluctantly, and testified.”
Resident Judi Pace said her Corral Canyon rental home was completely burned to the ground and her permanent home, situated nearby, incurred $200,000 worth of damage.
“I think he [Franks] should have been served more community service hours but I understand how and why, so he would cooperate with the bigger problem, which is the other accomplices,” Pace said Thursday.
About 20 residents delivered emotional testimonies at the sentence hearing. Some who could not attend submitted written statements that were read before the court by resident Beverly Taki, who spearheaded Operation Recovery, a support group that helps fire survivors network and gain professional assistance with the rebuilding process. Taki also spoke on behalf of many fire victims who, due to the economic climate, cannot afford to rebuild their homes.
“I can’t get out of bed, I can’t stop crying just trying to keep my family together,” resident Laura Schlieter said before the court. “When I left my house it was two stories, and when I came back it was two inches. My daughter says I cry every hour. It’s been hell, I’m just trying to get through everyday.”
Resident Carol Sue Stoddard said she lost her home, 12 cars, two trailers, two motorcycles, her business and 30 years worth of professional photography and video work to the fire.
“I live in a tiny trailer in my burnt rubble,” Stoddard said in her testimony. “It will take many years to rebuild, and my insurance will only pay for a house one third the size of what burned. My business is gone, so I have no income presently.
“The negligence of these defendants has caused irreversible consequences to our lives,” she added.
Residents also expressed disdain at the fact that Franks did not make any closing statements toward the end of the hearing.
“He didn’t even say he was sorry,” they said unanimously.
When asked after the sentencing why he chose to keep silent, Franks’ lawyer interjected: “Litigation is still pending against four other individuals. At this point in time he’s [Franks] basically been involved as a prosecution witness and while litigation is pending he really shouldn’t comment on that.”
The remaining four defendants- Brian Alan Anderson, 23; William Thomas Coppock, 24; Eric Matthew Ullman, 19; and Dean Allen Lavorante, 20-are accused of recklessly causing a fire with great bodily injury and recklessly causing a fire to multiple inhabited structures.
Ullman and Lavorante are scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing this Thursday to determine if there is enough evidence for them to stand trial. The arraignment to formally charge Anderson and Coppock is scheduled for March 2, after which a trial date will be set.