Opening Statements Begin in Trial for Man Accused of Sparking Palisades Fire
Prosecutors say the former Uber driver used a lighter to ignite the Lachman fire, while defense lawyers blame fireworks and say he called 911.
- On Wednesday, the federal arson trial of Jonathan Rinderknecht, a 30-year-old former Uber driver, opened in Los Angeles with prosecutors alleging he intentionally ignited the January 2025 Lachman Fire, which grew into the catastrophic Palisades Fire that killed 12 people.
- Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew O'Brien told jurors Rinderknecht sought "revenge against society" after a romantic breakup in 2024 left him lonely, while defense attorney Steven Haney countered that fireworks triggered the initial blaze and his client immediately called 911 to report it.
- Prosecutors cited geolocation data and surveillance footage placing Rinderknecht at the fire's origin, plus ChatGPT searches showing resentment toward the wealthy; Haney argued investigators left the Lachman site unsecured for 12 days, compromising forensic integrity.
- Rinderknecht faces up to 45 years in federal prison if convicted on three felony arson charges; the trial is expected to last two to three weeks with testimony from fire behavior experts.
- UCLA School of Law professor Jonathan Zasloff, whose home burned in the fire, warned against treating Rinderknecht as a "scapegoat," emphasizing that residents and government agencies face broader accountability for systemic public safety failures.
16 Articles
16 Articles
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
West Hawaii TodayAccused Palisades arsonist resented the wealthy, prosecutor says
Federal prosecutors said Wednesday that the man accused of setting the most destructive wildfire in the history of the city of Los Angeles was angry about spending New Year’s Eve alone and harbored resentments toward the wealthy. The post Accused Palisades arsonist resented the wealthy, prosecutor says appeared first on Hawaii Tribune-Herald.
Trial of Palisades arson suspect begins
Flames and smoke from the Pacific Palisades fire on January 7 can be seen on the hills behind homes in Santa Monica, California. Photo: Getty Images A federal prosecutor has told jurors a man feeling lonely and dejected over a breakup, and angry at society deliberately started a fire that grew into one of the deadliest and most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history.
Defendant in Deadly LA Wildfires Wanted ‘Revenge Against Society,’ Prosecutor Says
LOS ANGELES—More than a year after one of the most destructive fires in U.S. history, attorneys on Wednesday offered opening salvos in a federal jury trial accusing a 29-year-old man of sparking the initial flame that would lead, a week later, to the catastrophic inferno that claimed the lives of 12 people and reduced thousands of homes to ash in the wealthy coastal enclave of the Pacific Palisades. “He wanted revenge—revenge against society bec…
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