Hopkins fire: Defendant says 2021 fire was an accident

A Ukiah man said Wednesday he dropped a cigarette and accidentally ignited the 257-acre fire that destroyed 30 homes north of Ukiah on Sept. 12, 2021.

Devin Lamar Johnson, 23, testified in his own defense on the final day of testimony in his ongoing trial. He is accused of arson and of starting the 2021 Hopkins Fire in the Mendocino County town of Calpella.

Fueled by light winds and temperatures above 90 degrees, the Hopkins Fire raged through numerous streets in the city before reaching a hill on the edge of the Russian River and Lake Mendocino.

The flames quickly spread across a 300-meter-high ridge to the western shore of Lake Mendocino, eventually burning parts of the reservoir that had dried up as a result of the drought in California.

About 200 people were evacuated from homes in the area. No injuries were reported.

The fire destroyed homes along Eastside Calpella Road, a north-south road that runs parallel to the Russian River.

Johnson was identified as a suspect after a local photographer took a photo of him watching the fire from the Moore Street Bridge.

“He chose to stand on the bridge and watch what he did,” Mendocino County Assistant District Attorney Heidi Larson said Wednesday.

Johnson was arrested on September 14, 2021, two days after the fire broke out.

The trial, which will take place in Marin County Superior Court in San Rafael, will be presided over by Judge Kelly Simmons.

The case was moved to Marin County after Johnson’s attorney successfully argued for a change of venue last year to ensure his client a fair trial, since most residents in the Ukiah area were very familiar with the fire.

Possible host cities were Marin and Colusa counties, with Colusa located about 95 miles and just under two hours east of Ukiah.

Marin County is about 90 minutes south of the Mendocino County Courthouse in Ukiah.

A Mendocino County judge ruled that this was the better option because it would provide more jury pools.

On Wednesday, Johnson said the fire started when he dropped a used cigarette he found in the ashtray of an area bar. He said he was on a local hiking trail at the time and the lit cigarette burned on the ground for about 30 seconds.

“I tried to eradicate it,” he told jurors.

He spoke quietly and often murmured.

Simmons asked him to speak closer to the microphone, while the lawyers frequently repeated his statements so that the jury could understand what he was saying.

However, his version of events was refuted by Justin Buckingham, battalion chief of the Ukiah Valley Fire Authority, who testified as a witness for the prosecution.

Buckingham investigated the fire and said there was no evidence of cigarettes at the scene, adding that a fire is not ignited in just 30 seconds.

Larson questioned Johnson about his behavior on the day the fire broke out.

She asked why he decided to go on a dry path with a cigarette.

He replied that he had a bottle of water with him, and Larson asked why he didn’t use it to put out the cigarette. She said Johnson also didn’t call 911 and notify authorities about the fire, and asked him why.

“You expected others to call, right?” she added.

All of Johnson’s answers were inaudible.

Following his testimony, the defense concluded its argument and the opposing attorneys presented their closing arguments to the jury of four men and eight women.

Dana Liberatore, Johnson’s attorney with the Mendocino County Public Defender’s Office, told jurors that Larson had not proven that his client intentionally set the fire.

He reiterated Johnson’s position that the fire was an accident and stressed that his client had neither the motive nor the mental attitude to intentionally set a fire.

“What was his motive for doing this if he really intended to hurt someone or burn down a building?” Liberatore asked the jury.

In her closing argument, Larson claimed that Johnson knew his conduct was wrong.

“If it was an accident, why has the defendant shown no remorse for what happened to this day?” she asked the jury.

The testimony lasted about four days and Johnson could face a prison sentence of ten years to life if convicted.

The jury received the case on Wednesday afternoon.

Reach staff writer Colin Atagi at [email protected]. Follow on Twitter @colin_atagi