Cameraman Accused of Setting 5,100-Acre Fire

The arson trial of a freelance video cameraman began Tuesday with a prosecutor’s assertion that the defendant, Joshua Harville, set a 5,100-acre blaze in Leona Valley in order to score exclusive TV news footage.

Until his arrest in August, Harville, 23, of Palmdale made his living selling video news clips to local television stations. Officials said his video of the Sept. 3, 2002, fire -- which destroyed five homes and forced more than 200 people to evacuate -- was aired by some Los Angeles-area TV news programs.

In her opening statements in a downtown courtroom, Los Angeles County Deputy Dist. Atty. Jean Daly said Harville was motivated by his ambition to get compelling news.

“What could make his business better?” asked Daly, the head arson prosecutor for the district attorney’s office. “What better than a fire?”

The prosecution and the defense agreed that an arsonist started the blaze that ignited the rural Antelope Valley community.

But the case against Harville will turn on circumstantial evidence.

No one saw Harville start the blaze, Daly said. But testimony from fire officials and witnesses would put Harville and his Toyota Camry near the fire’s point of origin that day, she said, adding that she would show that Harville made conflicting statements to investigators.

Harville’s attorney, Alan Baum, told the jury that Harville had arrived at the scene of the fire early -- but after it had been set and only in his capacity as a hustling newsman.

“There’s no shame in that,” Baum said in his opening remarks. “It’s a competitive business, and if you’re not first, you’re last.”

Key to the prosecution’s argument are numerous witnesses who said they saw a car similar to Harville’s parked in a turnout along Bouquet Canyon Road during the fire.

Pointing out that the descriptions of the car did not match, Baum said he would show that the Camry was being driven by Harville’s wife that day.

Harville, he said, drove to the scene in a Ford Crown Victoria, which he preferred for his work because it is easily confused with police and fire vehicles, giving him easier access to crime and disaster scenes.

“It’s a trick of the trade, but it works,” Baum said.

Daly also focused on a suspicious patch of flame that broke out on the western side of Bouquet Canyon Road. She said firefighters noticed it about the time they noticed Harville on the scene.

Battalion Chief Bruce Schmidt of the U.S. Forest Service testified that soon after arriving on the scene, he saw Harville emerging from the brush on the west side of the road.

Harville had asked Schmidt for details about the fire, but Schmidt said he was too busy to answer. A few minutes later, Schmidt said, the patch of flame appeared on the west side of the road.

During cross-examination, Baum pointed out that Schmidt told investigators that he may have noticed the patch of flame before he saw Harville.

Harville, who has been in custody since his arrest in lieu of $1 million bail, faces a maximum of 10 years to life in prison, if convicted.

On Tuesday morning, he sat calmly beside his attorney, wearing a gray business suit and blue jail slippers. A handful of friends and family members watched in the courtroom, and at lunch were joined by Harville’s wife, Nicole, who is eight months’ pregnant with their first child. She is expected to be called as a witness in the case.

Steve Keyser, a friend speaking on behalf of the family, said they expected Harville to be exonerated. Richard Engersbach, an old high school friend, concurred.

“If he said he didn’t do it,” Engersbach said, “it’s all I need.”