The man accused of starting the Line Fire and burning close to 40,000 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest pleaded not guilty to arson charges on Tuesday.
Justin Wayne Halstenberg, 34, was arrested on September 10 at his home in Norco after investigators charged him with attempting three times to ignite the fire. Investigators shared last week that two of the attempts were put out by fire crews and nearby residents.
The third attempt led to the start of the Line Fire, which is 50% contained and caused Governor Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency for San Bernardino County.
Halstenberg is facing 11 felony counts, including aggravated arson, arson causing great bodily injury and arson of forest land.
District Attorney Jason Anderson says the fire so far has caused more than $7 million in damages, injured several firefighters and destroyed the popular Keller Peak fire lookout near Running Springs.
Anderson boiled Halstenberg’s alleged arson as a senseless act driven by power.
“It's hard to wrap your head around it as to why somebody would think that that's the way I want to go about committing a crime,” said Anderson in a phone interview with KVCR. “I suppose the only thing is a sense of power that someone was responsible for what they see unfolding. But it's just carnage. It's absolute carnage.”
Sheriff Shannon Dicus said at a press conference last week that investigators are looking into the possibility that Halstenberg could be responsible for setting other fires in the area. Dicus said automatic license plate readers captured a license plate of a vehicle connected to Halstenberg near where the Line Fire began.
Dicus and Anderson declined to say exactly how the fire was set, only noting that Halstenberg used incendiary devices and that the investigation is in its early stages.
The Sheriff's Department announced Monday that Halstenberg missed previous arraignment hearings due to medical reasons. His court-appointed attorney was unavailable for immediate comment. Halstenberg is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on September 23.
The Line Fire began on September 5 near Baseline and Alpin Streets in East Highland, prompting evacuations in the surrounding area and mountain communities, including Running Springs and Arrowbear.
California Newsroom partner LAist contributed to this story
