The Los Gatos contractor facing up to seven years in prison for
allegedly starting last spring’s Summit Fire pleaded not guilty to
his charges, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
The Los Gatos contractor facing up to seven years in prison for allegedly starting last spring’s Summit Fire pleaded not guilty to his charges, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Channing Verden’s next court appearance is 9:30 a.m. June 30 in Department 23 at the Hall of Justice in San Jose for preliminary hearing setting.
Cal Fire officials pinpointed brush piles at a property on the 31000 block of Summit Road that Verden, 51, was hired to burn as the source of the fire that raged for a week in May 2008, wiping out 4,270 acres and razing 132 structures. Verden, however, said he’s innocent and that, as a victim of California wildfires himself, he’d be the last person to set a wildfire.
For a previous story on the fires and the arrest, click here.
