People v. McCabe CA2/5

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On February 4, 2021, defendant David McCabe, a 63-year- old homeless veteran, lit three separate fires in the City of Long Beach—two on the campus of a local high school, and one in the front yard of someone’s home. When police confronted him, he admitted to setting the fires, described where he had set them, and explained that he needed the fires to warm his hands.

I. Charges

The People charged defendant with three counts of arson, including one count of arson of forest land (Penal Code, § 451, subd. (c); count one) and two counts of arson on a property of another (§ 451, subd. (d); counts two and three). The arson of forest land count corresponded to the fire defendant set in the front yard of a home. The People further alleged that defendant had a prior felony conviction for unlawfully causing a fire pursuant to section 452, subdivision (b) that qualified as a strike

2 under section 1170.12, subdivision (b) and section 667, subdivision (d). The matter proceeded to a jury trial.

II. Evidence at Trial

Defendant testified that he set the three fires, but that he had had only done so to warm his hands, which were extremely painful and…