Camp House Fire Suspect Should Be Charged with Cruelty to Animals, PETA Says

For Immediate Release:
September 16, 2025

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

St. Louis County, Minn. –

Today, PETA sent a letter to St. Louis County Attorney Kimberly Maki asking her to add cruelty-to-animals charges to the charge of failure to extinguish a fire that Parker John Wilson faces in connection with the devastating Camp House fire, which burned more than 12,000 acres and destroyed 150 houses and other structures in May.

PETA points out that in addition to destroying buildings, catastrophic fires terrorize, injure, kill, and displace countless wild and domestic animals. A flock of chickens died in the Camp House fire, and the lone survivor, a hen named Reba, suffered burns.

“As the Camp House fire ravaged the forest, it tore through untold numbers of terrified wild animals’ homes, burned a flock of chickens to death, and surely killed and traumatized many others,” says PETA Vice President of Legal Advocacy Daniel Paden. “PETA is asking County Attorney Maki to hold the perpetrator accountable for causing so much suffering and death.”

Prosecutors in California and Oregon have pursued cruelty-to-animals charges after PETA sent them similar requests, and won convictions.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

PETA’s letter to Maki follows.

September 16, 2025

The Honorable Kimberly J. Maki

St. Louis County Attorney

Dear Ms. Maki:

I hope this letter finds you well. I’m writing to request that your office add cruelty-to-animals charges, as appropriate, to the charge of failure to extinguish a fire that Parker John Wilson already faces, in connection with the devastating Camp House fire near Brimson.

While it’s well-known that the fire destroyed at least 150 homes and other structures and scorched more than 12,000 acres of land, catastrophic fires like this one also inflict terror and suffering on many domesticated and wild animals, causing them to experience prolonged, agonizing deaths. For example, the Camp House fire killed a flock of chickens, and the lone survivor—a hen named Reba—sustained painful burns.

Minn. Stat. § 343.21(1) states that no person shall “torture … or unjustifiably injure, maim, mutilate, or kill any animal.” Minn. Stat. § 343.20(3) defines “torture” in part as “every act … which causes or permits unnecessary or unjustifiable pain, suffering, or death.”

Given that Wilson is accused of starting a wildfire that led to unnecessary and unjustifiable pain, suffering, and death for animals, I respectfully ask that investigators and your office add cruelty-to-animals charges to the count he already faces. Prosecutors in California and Oregon pursued such charges in similar cases, resulting in convictions.

Thank you for your consideration and for the difficult work that you do.

Sincerely,