L.A. Might Finally Know Who Started the Palisades Fire

"He dials 911 to report the fire, but his first few calls do not connect (presumably because this is coastal Los Angeles, and our cell service is terrible). He then begins screen-recording on his cellphone while he continues to dial 911. He asks ChatGPT if he might be criminally liable for starting a fire with cigarettes, possibly to cover up what he's done. Then, the man films the flames on his iPhone as firefighters arrive."

"By January 2, they determine that the fire is out. But it has in fact gone underground, smoldering in the root system of the hillside's brush. Days later, strong winds travel from the desert to that same hillside and revive the blaze, which becomes the Palisades Fire. It levels more than 6,800 structures and kills 12 people. (Those structures included my childhood home, and those deaths included Arthur, a man who'd lived next door to that old house and whom I'd known and loved"

Shortly before midnight on New Year's Eve, a son of missionaries visited a scenic overlook near the Los Angeles coast where hikers leave Buddha statues in a hollowed power pole stump. He listened to a French rap song and, according to investigators, started a fire with an open flame and combustible material with malicious intent. He dialed 911 but initial calls did not connect, began screen-recording while redialing, asked ChatGPT about potential criminal liability for starting fires with cigarettes, and filmed flames as firefighters arrived. The blaze smoldered underground, later reignited by desert winds, leveled more than 6,800 structures, and killed 12 people. The suspect is 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, and his ChatGPT conversations were used to help establish intent.

Read at The Atlantic