The men, David Scott Smith, 66, and his son Travis Shane Smith, 32, were arrested and are accused of violating a penal code section commonly known as reckless arson, the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office said
A California man and his son are accused of reckless arson in the massive Caldor Fire, which scorched more than 200,000 acres, destroyed structures and forced the evacuation of South Lake Tahoe, prosecutors said Wednesday.
The Smiths were arrested on a “Ramey warrant,” which is when someone is taken into custody before charges are filed, the DA’s office said in a statement. “They’re charged that it’s accidental but reckless — the DA is not saying it was intentional,” Reichel said. “We are saying we are 100 percent innocent. We’re saying they did not start it.”
He said that it was not a surprise that the pair were under investigation and that search warrants were conducted at their homes in August.