LOS ANGELES — Spencer Pratt, known from reality television, is urging officials to take responsibility for the Palisades fire. This comes after federal prosecutors recently confirmed what many locals suspected: the blaze was reignited by a previous fire that hadn’t been completely extinguished.
“Our legal team outlined the fire’s cause in court months ago, and now, the Department of Justice backs us up. It all stemmed from the Lachman fire on New Year’s Eve, which the Los Angeles City Fire Department didn’t fully manage,” said Pratt, who lost his home in the incident.
“The city let it smolder, and then the state allowed it to linger on their property for nearly a week, leading to the devastation of my community. I told you so!”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom faced backlash, criticized for their leadership during the fire and their inability to prevent it in the first place.
This was initially reported shortly after the January 7 Palisades fire but gained more attention after federal prosecutors indicted Jonathan Linderknecht, a former Uber driver, for starting the earlier Ruckman fire.
Although quickly extinguished, investigators reported that the Ruckman fire reignited, tragically leading to the deaths of 12 people, the destruction of nearly 7,000 homes, and damages exceeding $150 billion.
Rinderknecht’s arrest supports early suspicions about the fire, which began at a popular observation deck on the Temescal Ridge hiking trail in the affluent Pacific Coast area.
Authorities previously indicated that the fire likely had “human origins” and might have been sparked by fireworks.
Now, nine months later, they believe Rinderknecht intentionally ignited the blaze before fleeing and calling emergency services.
Judy Wagner, another former resident of Pacific Palisades who lost her home to the fire, described the response from authorities as “inadequate.”
“I’d like to know exactly what went down, but the reality is that the fire was mismanaged. It doesn’t matter who was responsible for starting it; the response was lacking,” she expressed, suggesting that others could have been involved in the incident.
“It was an unfortunate disaster that could have been avoided, but while he might be the one charged, the area is known for kids gathering and lighting fireworks, which often leads to fires,” she added.
Federal arson charges come with stringent minimum sentences ranging from five to 20 years, with heightened penalties if injuries or fatalities result.
Rinderknecht was interrogated immediately after the fire but reportedly lied about his part in it. He is set to be transferred back to California to face trial.
The Palisades fire coincided with the Eaton fire, which resulted in 19 deaths, yet the cause of that fire is still undetermined.
City and state officials faced criticism for poor decisions and a slow response to initial fire reports.
Bass faced scrutiny for being in Ghana while the fire raged and had a tense interaction with reporters regarding the crisis management, which included issues like a water supply running dry when firefighters attempted to use fire hydrants.
She also criticized the $17.6 million budget cuts to the Los Angeles Fire Department occurring before the fires.
Governor Newsom was also criticized for breaking his promise to enhance the state’s wildfire prevention strategies shortly after taking office in 2019. This plan was supposed to involve clearing piles of overgrowth that had been accumulating for years in the Pacific Palisades.
However, instead of reforming, he reduced the state’s fire protection budget by approximately $150 million and exaggerated the scale of deforestation, claiming that 90,000 acres were treated when in reality, the figure was closer to 12,000.
