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Tim Cronin, the attorney for the family of the teen named as the person who started an unauthorized fire which investigators claim was the triugger of the Valley View Fire, issued the following statement on the family’s behalf Friday:

I respect KXLY’s policy of not releasing the name of the minor and his family, involved in this matter.

The young man and his family understand the confusion and concern expressed by those harmed by the recent Valley fires. They wish to assure the people of Spokane that their son is a responsible young man and he has fully cooperated with authorities in attempting to determine the origin of this devastating fire. We know at this time that three days prior to the fire, the young man, with permission of the adult he thought was the property owner, long known to the young man’s family, started and properly extinguished a small fire in a long used fire pit area. In extinguishing the fire, he twice watered down the ground for approximately five minutes, turned over the ground and ensured no embers were remaining. We understand the consenting property owner passed by the fire pit area several times in the intervening three days and reports no evidence of fire or smoke.

The lawsuit claims the parents are liable for their son’s “willful and malicious” conduct. DNR and fire experts have not yet determined the cause of this tragic fire. It is not reasonable to claim in a lawsuit for money that the fire damages were caused by any improper conduct by the young man or his family, and his conduct was certainly not “willful and malicious.”