All charges were dropped against the three men accused of shooting at homemade exploding targets that sparked the 5,800-acre Ana Fire near Summer Lake in July 2017.
Elijah Matthew Dyer, 28, David Robert Evans, 35, both of Springfield, and Gary Arthur Bigelow, 69, of Walterville, were facing charges of felony manufacturing of a destructive device, felony criminal conspiracy and six counts of misdemeanor reckless burning.
Elijah Michalowski, acting Lake County District Attorney, recently filed motions to dismiss the charges without prejudice. He reviewed the evidence in the case and concluded the prosecution would have been unable to meet its burden at trial.
The three men were visiting the area July 8, 2017, for a family gathering on private property just north of the Summer Lake Lodge when they were accused of added pyrotechnics to targets and shot at the targets, leading to the wildfire.