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No Charges to be Filed in the Tea Fire
The ten people suspected of starting last Fall's destructive wildfire in Montecito and Santa Barbara will only be charged for "misdemeanor trespassing and unlawfully building and using a campfire without permission," the Associated Press is reporting. The District Attorney said that he could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that their illegal campfire beget the conflagration that spread and destroyed 230 homes and burned near 2,000 acres. The Tea Fire began on November 13th around 5:45 p.m., hours after the group left where the fire began. It was believed that they did not completely put out the fire and winds later sparked up the fire.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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