A federal judge this week will try to put a price tag on the trees that a Brinnon, Washington logger admitted to poaching from Olympic National Forest.
Reid B. Johnston, 41, pleaded guilty to willfully injuring and committing depredation against U.S. property in November. He received a one-year prison sentence in December for the theft of 102 fir, cedar and maple trees in the Rocky Brook area of the Dosewallips drainage between May 2009 and January 2010.
A restitution hearing is set for 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Tacoma, Washington. Judge Robert J. Bryan will determine the amount of money Johnston must pay to make up for the timber he stole, said Emily Langlie, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Diggs and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Wilkinson wrote in a pre-hearing memorandum that the ecological value of the tree Johnston destroyed is $242,375. Since restitution was limited to a maximum of $120,000 under the plea agreement, the government is seeking $120,000.
From The Peninsula Daily News: https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20130303/NEWS/130309992/judge-to-weigh-true-cost-of-old-growth-timber-theft