Federal prosecutors have refiled a narrowed indictment against Jonathan Rinderknecht, dropping one felony count and focusing remaining charges on two blazes: the Lachman Fire (Jan. 1, 2025) and the later Palisades Fire. The initial federal trial ended in a mistrial with jurors deadlocked 10-2 leaning toward acquittal. The government's case rests on cellphone records, surveillance footage and Rinderknecht's post-fire behavior; the defense calls the evidence circumstantial. Rinderknecht will appear for a status conference next week and faces a retrial in September.
Feds Refile Charges Against Accused Palisades Arsonist, Narrow Indictment After Mistrial
Federal prosecutors have renewed their case against Jonathan Rinderknecht, 30, but with a slimmer, more focused indictment following a recent mistrial. The revised filing drops one of three felony counts and centers the remaining allegations on two separate blazes linked to the wider Palisades disaster.
What the New Indictment Alleges
The updated indictment charges Rinderknecht with igniting the Lachman Fire on New Year's Day 2025 and with causing the subsequent devastation after that blaze was allegedly reignited days later and became the catastrophic Palisades Fire. Prosecutors say Rinderknecht started the first blaze around midnight along a hiking trail in the Pacific Palisades Highlands and was motivated by frustration with his place in society and anger toward wealthy people.
Evidence and Defense Arguments
At the first trial, the government's case relied on cellphone records, surveillance footage, and Rinderknecht's conduct after the blaze. Prosecutors pointed to video and location data showing he had visited the trail frequently and cited a green Bic lighter later found in his car. Recordings also captured repeated 911 calls placed by Rinderknecht after the fire began.
Defense attorneys countered that the evidence is circumstantial and argued prosecutors never proved he started the initial fire. They also disputed the theory that smoldering embers from the Lachman Fire survived underground and later rekindled amid strong winds to cause the Palisades conflagration.
Mistrial And What Comes Next
The first federal trial ended in a mistrial less than two months ago, with jurors deadlocked 10-2 leaning toward acquittal. Judges sent jurors back to deliberate, but the jury foreman later told the court the panel could not reach a unanimous verdict. One juror later described prosecutors' case as unconvincing.
Rinderknecht is due back in court next week for a status conference. A retrial is scheduled for September.
Impact Of The Palisades Fire
The Palisades Fire burned during powerful windstorms and resulted in catastrophic damage: approximately 7,000 homes and businesses were destroyed, an estimated $150 billion in losses was reported, and 12 people were killed.
Note: The revised indictment narrows the government's legal theory and places the two fires at the center of its strategy for the upcoming retrial.
Jonathan Rinderknecht, a suspect in the Palisades Fire, is shown in an undated photo provided on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. AP
Firefighters work to extinguish the Palisades Fire during a windstorm on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, on the west side of Los Angeles, California. REUTERS
Courtroom sketches depict defendant Jonathan Rinderknecht and defense attorney Steve Haney during closing arguments in a federal arson trial in Los Angeles on June 23, 2026. Mona Shafer Edwards / BACKGRID
Jonathan Rinderknecht is a suspect in the Palisades Fire. Seminole County Sheriff's office
A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire as it burns during a windstorm on the west side of Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday, January 7, 2025. REUTERS
Rinderknecht is set to be retried after his first federal arson case ended in a mistrial. Mona Shafer Edwards / BACKGRID
Defense attorney Steven Haney talks to the press outside court on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, in Park, California. David Buchan for Ca Post
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