USA - California. Judge Michael A. Smith sentenced Rickie Lee Fowler, 30, white, to death

Superior Court Judge Michael A. Smith sentenced Rickie Lee Fowler, 30, white, to death, following the Sept. 12 (see) San Bernardino County jury recommendation. Fowler, a methamphetamine addict, was convicted of setting the catastrophic 2003 fire that destroyed 1,000 homes, blackened the San Bernardino Mountains and led to 5 deaths. The jury found that Fowler deliberately set the blaze by tossing a lighted road flare into brush at the base of the mountains. The fire broke out Oct. 25, 2003, at Old Waterman Canyon Road and California 18, and raced through the forest and brush, forcing the evacuation of more than 30 communities and 80,000 people. All five deaths were due to heart attacks triggered by the stress of the fire, according to prosecution testimony. The prosecutor said Fowler deliberately set the blaze in a fit of rage against his godfather, who had kicked Fowler out of his house at the top of the canyon.