Tens of thousands of acres of the San Bernardino Mountains were scorched, and thousands of residents were forced from their homes in September 2024 after two wildfires erupted in the region. The massive “Line Fire” alone consumed nearly 44,000 acres, damaged multiple structures, and prompted evacuations that required the deployment of the National Guard.
On Wednesday, Justin Wayne Halstenberg, 35, of Norco, was sentenced to 16 years to life in prison for igniting the Line Fire as well as the smaller Bacon Fire.
Halstenberg was first arrested just four days after the Line Fire erupted on Sept. 5, 2024. Investigators used license plate readers, surveillance footage, and other evidence to place him near the fire’s origin in Highland, officials said. Incendiary devices, described as legal paper wrapped around coins, were recovered near Base Line Road and Alpin Street, and a DNA analysis on the coins matched Halstenberg’s profile.
“He was held to answer on all 14 felony charges, including aggravated arson of forest land, property and possession of flammable materials,” the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office reported following his preliminary hearing. The defendant pleaded not guilty during initial court appearances in September 2024.
The Line Fire burned for weeks, leaving long-lasting environmental scars and straining firefighting resources. CAL FIRE’s financial administrators testified during the proceedings that aircraft and manpower costs had reached $82 million just 18 days into the fire.
The smaller Bacon Fire, also linked to Halstenberg, was quickly extinguished by a Good Samaritan.
District Attorney Jason Anderson said Wednesday that the sentence reflected the “sheer destruction and devastation” caused by Halstenberg’s actions. “Our mountain communities will be impacted by his crimes for many years, and additional lengthy and ongoing environmental recovery efforts,” he said. He added that the verdict should reassure residents that “a serial arsonist will no longer torment our County,” and thanked the jury for their consideration.
Detective Jacob Hernandez of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department’s Highland Station worked alongside California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Battalion Chief Matthew Kirkhart and his team of investigators to trace the fires back to Halstenberg. The prosecution, led by Deputy District Attorneys Justin Crocker and Andrew Peppler, argued that Halstenberg had intentionally set the fires to cause destruction.
Halstenberg was found guilty on May 22, 2025, of seven counts related to the Line Fire and two counts tied to the subsequent Bacon Fire. Dawn Rowe, chair of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, called the verdict “a powerful affirmation of justice.”
For residents of the San Bernardino Mountains, the sentence brings a measure of closure after the unprecedented disruption of the 2024 fire season.