According to Stevens, Ellison implicated his brother Jimmy in open court. Hayfork is not alone. The desperation and greed that prompted some locals to burn their own valley is repeating itself throughout Northern California. Hayfork is unfortunately now on the map as the place where economic arson came out of the closet. Last year, as a result of our story, the community received a federal grant for locals and environmentalists to begin the healing process.
More wounds are likely to be reopened in the coming months.
The forest can be a community's livelihood, but that is no reason a few miscreants, thinking that it belongs to them, can get away with arson. All letters to the editor are for publication and may be edited for length and clarity.