Overview
- U.S. Magistrate Judge Rozella A. Oliver denied bond Tuesday, keeping Jonathan Rinderknecht in custody while his case proceeds.
- Prosecutors filed texts suggesting plans to leave the United States for Bali or Malaysia and presented photos of a .380 pistol hidden in a stuffed animal, with a loaded magazine recovered at arrest.
- The government argues he poses a flight risk and a danger, citing alleged threats to burn his sister’s home and to kill his brother-in-law, which led the family to move out.
- Rinderknecht has pleaded not guilty to three federal counts tied to an alleged Jan. 1 Lachman Fire that investigators say smoldered and later reignited as the deadly Palisades Fire.
- Trial is scheduled for April 21, 2026, with potential decades in prison if convicted, while the defense disputes causation and sought strict release conditions backed by his parents.