‘Unprecedented’ indictment of federal firefighter leads employees to question their liabilities
A workforce is panicking after a local sheriff arrested a federal supervisor doing his job.
On an October day in 2022, Ricky Snodgrass—a U.S. Forest Service “burn boss”—led a fairly routine effort to reduce the risk of wildland fire that has increasingly devastated western states in recent years. It ended in his arrest.
Snodgrass and his crew, based in eastern Oregon at the Malheur National Forest, conducted a prescribed burn of 300 acres. A USFS release ahead of the burn cautioned residents to stay away from the area, asked them not to interfere with the operation and promoted the benefits of the effort.
Some residents, however, did not heed the advice to stay away.
eClips 