Arsonist 's Trial Begins

According to the AP the trial has begun for Robert Lee Oyler, accused of ignitaing a wildfire that killed five U.S. Forest Service firefighters in 2006:

In opening statements for Raymond Lee Oyler's murder trial, Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Michael Hestrin told jurors that Oyler was a serial arsonist who set 25 blazes, including the Esperanza fire, and sometimes as many as three a day during 2006. Hestrin said Oyler was "a man bent on destruction ... a man wanting to be so important, he unleashed disaster on five men." Oyler, 38, has pleaded not guilty to 45 counts including murder and arson. He claimed he had been watching his 7-month-old child at home and then went to a casino when the Esperanza fire began on Oct. 26, 2006, as fierce Santa Ana winds roared through Southern California. If convicted, he faces the death penalty.