After Wednesday’s arrest of Jonathan Rinderknecht in connection with the deadly Palisades Fire, California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared that there was finally “closure” for Pacific Palisades residents, but nothing could be further from the truth. The arrest provided answers about the fire’s origin, but created a lot more questions.

A criminal complaint charging Rinderknecht with intentionally setting the blaze states that it started just after midnight on January 1, 2025, and was contained by the Los Angeles Fire Department within a day or two, depending upon which LAFD official was speaking. A firebrand became seated in dense vegetation and smoldered and burned in the roots underground for nearly a week until January 7, when the predicted windstorm brought embers to the surface. By the next morning, most of Pacific Palisades was gone.