Jeffrey Cameron Schmid is scheduled for sentencing Nov. 3 on five counts of arson stemming from a series of forest fires set this summer near this Plumas County seat.
Schmid, 36, of Quincy, pleaded guilty Sept. 29 to one count of felony aggravated arson and four counts of arson on Plumas National Forest land.
His plea agreement is expected to include the maximum sentence of 10 years to life in prison, said Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister.
Schmid may also have to pay fines of up to $50,000 plus a penalty assessment of between $17 million and $22 million. That amount will be set at a restitution hearing, scheduled as part of his sentencing hearing.
He will also be required to register as an arson offender, Hollister said.
His arrangement with Schmid included an understanding that Schmid would not be prosecuted by the federal government, which manages the land where the fires started.
Schmid, a Quincy High School graduate and Sierra Pacific Industries employee, was arrested Aug. 20 when he was brought in for questioning shortly after two fires started on national forest lands south of Quincy, said Plumas County Sheriff Greg Hagwood.
Additional charges stem from a series of fires started in July and August that include the Minerva fire, which started July 27 and burned within two miles of Quincy.
Schmid remains in the Plumas County jail pending his sentencing.
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