Monday, May 17, 2021

The Citizen app company apologized for identifying the wrong man as a Los Angeles arson suspect

LATimes:

“We publicly posted the photo and offered a cash reward for information without formal coordination with the appropriate agencies. Once we realized this error, we immediately retracted the photo and reward offer. We are actively working to improve our internal processes to ensure this does not occur again. This was a mistake we are taking very seriously,” the company said.

...

In a briefing Monday, Los Angeles Fire Chief ... said the actual suspect was arrested at 2:30 p.m. Sunday after investigators determined there were multiple points of origin for the fire. The man, who has not been identified by authorities, has been described to The Times by multiple sources as a person experiencing homelessness who set several fires in the area in a deliberate act of arson. 

Also, the LATimes last week:

As the number of tents, makeshift shelters and campers on Los Angeles streets has surged, so has the scourge of fire. In the three years since the Los Angeles Fire Department began classifying them, fires related to homelessness have nearly tripled. In the first quarter of 2021, they occurred at a rate of 24 a day, making up 54% of all fires the department responded to.