A new damages trial in a wildfire lawsuit against PacifiCorp began as planned March 24 despite a request for delay by the company after a state report cast doubt on PacifiCorp’s liability.
The report, published March 19 by the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), concluded that downed power lines played a minimal role in the growth of the Santiam Fire in 2020.
PacifiCorp had already been found liable by a jury for the fire in 2023 in James et al vs. PacifiCorp, as well as for the Echo Mountain Complex, South Obenchain and 242 fires.
A series of damages trials are scheduled throughout 2025 in Multnomah County Circuit Court to resolve a cross-section of claims and use the results as standards for settlement talks.
PacifiCorp filed a motion March 20 asking for a stay of upcoming trials in light of the report, as well as expedited consideration in time to delay the March 24 trial. The motion said ODF’s conclusions could impact the validity of the 2023 verdict and whether or not Santiam Fire survivors should be awarded damages.
Plaintiff attorneys have argued the report has no legal bearing on the case and does not provide grounds to overturn the verdict. In a statement to Our Town, lead counsel said the report acknowledges ODF lacked access to key evidence which had been disposed of by PacifiCorp, and contradicted trial testimony.
Parties argued the matter during a hearing March 21 and Judge Steffan Alexander denied the request for expedited consideration. He made no ruling on the motion to strike and said it would be considered at a future date in the normal course of court business.
The March 24 trial heard claims from seven plaintiffs including three Santiam Fire claimants: John Wagner, Michele Pfohl and the Estate of Darrell Huber.
Opening arguments were held March 25, during which neither party mentioned the ODF report. Plaintiff attorneys had argued in a pre-trial motion that the report should be excluded from evidence because it had no bearing on the issue of damages.
Testimony was scheduled to last through the week and a verdict possibly by Friday or Monday. For results of any jury decisions, check canyonweekly.com or ourtownsantiam.com
Rep. Jami Cate (R-Lebanon) has criticized a March ODF report as potentially “biased” in its conclusion that PacifiCorp was not the cause of the Santiam Fire.
In an email to supporters March 21, Cate said the report’s findings were outside the scope of a related ODF investigation and contradicted trial testimony and eyewitness accounts.
ODF concluded that floating embers from the Beachie Creek Fire spread to the rest of the canyon on Labor Day 2020, and that downed power lines had no significant impact on the fire.
This is in contrast to a 2023 verdict by a Portland jury that the company’s refusal to de-energize its system during a red flag warning was the cause of the fire.
Cate said, in light of evidence presented during the trial as well as the personal accounts of fire victims, it was unlikely the ODF report was thorough or impartial.
In a statement issued the day the report was published, ODF said it evaluated thousands of pages of documents, conducted 180 interviews and investigated multiple reports of powerline-caused fires.
