A U.S. Forest Service crew boss has reached a plea deal in connection to the 2001 deaths of four Washington firefighters.

Ellreese Daniels, 47, was scheduled to stand trial next week on four counts of involuntary manslaughter and seven counts of making false statements to investigators for allegedly making decisions that led to the deaths of the firefighters as they were trapped by the Thirtymile Fire near Wenatchee.

However, Daniels pleaded guilty on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Spokane to making false statements to federal investigators, which is a federal misdemeanor.

It’s one of the first cases where a fire incident commander was charged criminally for decisions that led to the deaths of firefighters.