California State Parks is suing the company that handled the alarm system for Bidwell Mansion over the 2024 arson fire that left the historic Chico home in ruins.
State Parks alleges the system failed and delayed firefighter response.
The civil lawsuit against alarm company Advantage Total Protection was filed March 12 in Butte County Superior Court, State Parks announced in a press release.
According to the release, the lawsuit alleges that the company failed to “conduct a proper inspection and test when it first took over the fire and alarm monitoring contract” for the mansion in June 2024.
It also alleges that the company led State Parks to believe it had “conducted the required testing and that the system was operating as required.”
“State Parks never had any indication that the fire alarm system would not work as designed in the event of a catastrophic fire,” the release states. “Because of these failures, fire authorities and State Parks were not timely notified of the arson at Bidwell Mansion in December 2024, leading to the nearly complete destruction of the historic property and the historic objects inside.”
The state is seeking $38 million in damages.
Advantage Total Protection told NSPR in a statement that it “denies any liability related to the alleged allegations.”
The Butte County District Attorney’s Office prosecuted Chico resident Kevin Carlson for intentionally setting the mansion on fire on Dec. 11, 2024. Carlson was sentenced to 11 years in prison and ordered to pay about $37 million in restitution.
District Attorney Mike Ramsey told NSPR on March 13 that his office has been watching the state’s investigation into the alarm company to see whether any evidence emerges that would warrant a criminal case.
So far, Ramsey said, no such evidence exists.
He added that the alarm investigation doesn’t “change the fact of the arson.”
Meanwhile, the future of Bidwell Mansion is up for debate.
State Parks released a survey March 12 asking the public how it’d like to see the burned-out mansion restored.
The possibilities include preserving the ruins, rebuilding a replica, constructing a new building that pays homage to the home on the outside while incorporating new features inside, or commemorating the site without replacing the building.
Input is being gathered until April 24.
