NBA Hall of Famer Chris Bosh has unexpectedly surfaced in the criminal case surrounding the deadly 2025 Palisades Fire, but the connection is to a Los Angeles mansion he owns, not an allegation that he started the wildfire.
Attorneys for Jonathan Rinderknecht, the man accused of setting the smaller fire that prosecutors say eventually became the Palisades disaster, are seeking to introduce evidence suggesting a firework may have been launched from Bosh’s property around the time the initial blaze began.
According to court records reported by the California Post, the house is valued at approximately $11 million and sits near the area where the Lachman Fire started on January 1, 2025. Bosh reportedly had the property rented out when the fires occurred. There is no indication in the reporting that he was present, handled fireworks, or is suspected of a crime.
The proposed testimony comes from Michael T. Cole, a retired Cal Fire investigator who reportedly spent 18 years in the agency’s arson unit. Rinderknecht’s defense wants Cole to describe what he believes are signs of a firework being launched from the property.
A defense filing states, “Mr. Cole is expected to testify that during his 2025 investigation of the Palisades Fire he observed and documented a mark and an associated burn and smoke trail on the driveway and rear patio area of the residence at (redacted), and that, based on his training and experience, those marks are physical evidence of a launched firework.”
The defense is not claiming that Bosh personally launched a firework. Instead, his property has become part of an attempt to challenge the government’s explanation of how the original fire began. Defense attorney Steve Haney has indicated Cole would not testify about the fire’s ultimate origin or cause.
Federal prosecutors are fighting the effort to bring Cole before the jury. In a court filing, they argued he has “zero qualifications, training, or experience” to draw the specific conclusion about the marks.
Made to order and shipped to your door.
They also questioned the evidence supporting his assessment.
“His entire ‘expert’ opinion is based on six drone photographs of a brown stain on the driveway taken in either February 2025 or 2026. No up-close in-person inspection, no other testing. Six drone photographs, that’s it.”
Prosecutors further complained that the defense disclosed the potential witness too late, raising concerns about their ability to investigate his claims. The disputed marks have not been established in court as proof of a firework launch, much less proof that fireworks caused the wildfire.
The dispute matters because Rinderknecht’s defense has repeatedly pointed to fireworks reported around midnight on New Year’s Eve as an alternative explanation. During his first trial, witnesses offered conflicting accounts about whether they heard or saw fireworks near the area.
The government tells a different story. Federal investigators allege Rinderknecht traveled to a hiking trail in Pacific Palisades shortly after midnight on January 1 and deliberately ignited vegetation with a lighter. They say surveillance footage, phone-location records, witness statements, and fire-pattern analysis support their case. He has pleaded not guilty.
Investigators contend firefighters initially suppressed the roughly 11-acre Lachman Fire, but embers continued smoldering underground in vegetation. Strong winds on January 7 allegedly brought those embers back to the surface, setting off the much larger Palisades Fire.
The consequences were catastrophic. According to Cal Fire, the blaze burned 23,448 acres, destroyed more than 6,800 structures, and killed 12 people.
Rinderknecht’s first trial ended in June 2026 without a verdict when jurors deadlocked 10 to 2 in favor of acquittal. Prosecutors proceeded with a second trial under revised charges, and the defense continues challenging both the initial ignition theory and the alleged link between the two fires.
The new evidence involving Bosh’s mansion could give jurors another possible explanation to consider if the judge permits Cole’s testimony. However, a mark on a driveway does not by itself establish what caused either fire.
For now, Bosh’s only reported connection is ownership of a home that defense lawyers want examined in a high-stakes arson case. The legal fight is over whether the proposed fireworks evidence is credible, not whether the former Miami Heat champion is responsible for the disaster.
