California’s attorney general has told a federal judge that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. could face charges up to murder if investigators find reckless operation of power equipment caused any deadly wildfires in the past two years.
The brief from the office of Attorney General Xavier Becerra is purely advisory, and any criminal charges would most likely be filed by county district attorneys, not the state, the Sacramento Bee reported.
Prosecutors would have to assess PG&E’s “mental state” before determining whether to bring charges, which could range from murder to misdemeanor negligence, according to the brief filed late Friday.
The opinion was submitted to a judge overseeing a criminal case involving a PG&E natural gas pipeline explosion that killed eight people in the San Francisco suburb of San Bruno in 2010.
PG&E was convicted of violating federal pipeline safety laws, and the judge asked for the attorney general’s opinion on whether any wildfires constitute a probation violation.