Arizona Laws 13-1706. Burning of wildlands; exceptions; classification
A. It is unlawful for any person, without lawful authority, to intentionally, knowingly, recklessly or with criminal negligence to set or cause to be set on fire any wildland other than the person’s own or to permit a fire that was set or caused to be set by the person to pass from the person’s own grounds to the grounds of another person.
Attorney's Note
Under the Arizona Laws, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class 3 felony | up to 7 years | up to $150,000 |
| Class 1 misdemeanor | up to 6 months | up to $2,500 |
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 13-1706
- Action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Conduct: means an act or omission and its accompanying culpable mental state. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Criminal negligence: means , with respect to a result or to a circumstance described by a statute defining an offense, that a person fails to perceive a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the result will occur or that the circumstance exists. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Damage: means any physical or visual impairment of any surface. See Arizona Laws 13-1701
- Felony: means an offense for which a sentence to a term of imprisonment in the custody of the state department of corrections is authorized by any law of this state. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Knowingly: means , with respect to conduct or to a circumstance described by a statute defining an offense, that a person is aware or believes that the person's conduct is of that nature or that the circumstance exists. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Misdemeanor: means an offense for which a sentence to a term of imprisonment other than to the custody of the state department of corrections is authorized by any law of this state. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Occupied structure: means any structure as defined in paragraph 4 in which one or more human beings either is or is likely to be present or so near as to be in equivalent danger at the time the fire or explosion occurs. See Arizona Laws 13-1701
- Person: means a human being and, as the context requires, an enterprise, a public or private corporation, an unincorporated association, a partnership, a firm, a society, a government, a governmental authority or an individual or entity capable of holding a legal or beneficial interest in property. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Recklessly: means , with respect to a result or to a circumstance described by a statute defining an offense, that a person is aware of and consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the result will occur or that the circumstance exists. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Unlawful: means contrary to law or, where the context so requires, not allowed by law. See Arizona Laws 13-105
- Wildland: means any brush covered land, cutover land, forest, grassland or woods. See Arizona Laws 13-1701
B. This section does not apply to any of the following:
1. Open burning that is lawfully conducted in the course of agricultural operations.
2. Fire management operations that are conducted by a political subdivision.
3. Prescribed or controlled burns that are conducted with written authority from the state forester.
4. Lawful activities that are conducted pursuant to any rule, regulation or policy that is adopted by a state, tribal or federal agency.
5. In absence of a fire ban or other burn restrictions to a person on public lands, setting a fire for purposes of cooking or warming that does not spread sufficiently from its source to require action by a fire control agency.
C. A person who violates this section is guilty of an offense as follows:
1. If done with criminal negligence, the offense is a class 2 misdemeanor.
2. If done recklessly, the offense is a class 1 misdemeanor.
3. If done intentionally or knowingly and the person knows or reasonably should know that the person’s conduct violates any order or rule that is issued by a governmental entity and that prohibits, bans, restricts or otherwise regulates fires during periods of extreme fire hazard, the offense is a class 6 felony.
4. If done intentionally and the person’s conduct places another person in danger of death or serious bodily injury or places any building or occupied structure of another person in danger of damage, the offense is a class 3 felony.