Overview
- Jonathan Rinderknecht’s federal jury trial is scheduled to begin April 21, 2026, in Los Angeles.
- Rinderknecht pleaded not guilty to three federal counts, including arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, and faces up to 45 years if convicted.
- He remains in federal custody and is expected to seek pretrial release at a Nov. 18 hearing.
- Investigators say a small New Year’s Day blaze, the Lachman Fire, smoldered underground and reemerged under fierce winds as the Palisades Fire that killed 12 and destroyed about 6,800 structures over 23,448 acres.
- Prosecutors cite witness accounts, surveillance, cellphone geolocation placing him near the origin, and fire‑dynamics analysis, while a separate report and a federal grand jury subpoena focus scrutiny on LAFD decisions after the initial knockdown.