The New York Times-20080124-Nevada- Woman May See Bars Instead of View- -Brief-

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Nevada: Woman May See Bars Instead of View; [Brief]

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A woman has been indicted on charges saying she had three large trees up to a century old cut down on environmentally sensitive federal land near Lake Tahoe to improve her view, prosecutors said. Officials said they were not aware of any similar federal prosecutions. The woman, Patricia M. Vincent, 58, was indicted last week on charges of theft of government property and willingly damaging government property. If convicted, she faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count. The three ponderosa pines stood on a plot the Forest Service had designated as environmentally sensitive as part of a water quality plan. The trees were estimated to be 80 to 100 years old.