Kenneth Bass, 78, and his wife Cindy sued the City of Los Angeles and other entities in Los Angeles Superior Court on May 18, alleging smoke inhalation injuries, emotional distress, and mental anguish after the Palisades fire destroyed their Malibu home. The s
When Kenneth Bass and his wife Cindy sat down to file their complaint, the lawsuit didn’t just represent property damage. It was their health, their nerves, and the weeks that followed a fire that tore through Pacific Palisades and left them with a blank space where a home used to be.
Kenneth Bass. 78. and Cindy filed their lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on May 18. according to court records first reported by L.A. Material. Their claims list smoke inhalation injuries. emotional distress. and mental anguish tied to the Palisades fire. the complaint says. and they allege the blaze destroyed their Malibu home.
What makes their case land differently is not only what they lost, but whom they are suing. Their action is being processed within a master lawsuit that alleges numerous public entities and utility companies—including the city. the state. the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. the California Department of Parks and Recreation. and Southern California Edison—bear responsibility for harms suffered during the catastrophe. The master lawsuit says the Palisades fire destroyed some 6,800 structures and killed 12 people.
Both the city and LADWP have repeatedly denied responsibility for the losses suffered by residents and businesses affected by the fire.
Karen Bass’ press secretary. Paige Sterling. said in a statement that there was “nothing new” to note about Kenneth Bass’ participation in the suit. Sterling said. “Mayor Bass has spoken of her brother’s loss publicly since January of 2025.” She added that “Thousands of people are plaintiffs in this action. which names 18 public and private sector defendants. ” and that “The City Attorney’s Office is responsible for defending the City and DWP in this lawsuit.”.
Bass shared the family’s loss in January 2025 at a meeting with the Pacific Palisades Community Council. She told residents that the fire was not something her family watched from a distance. “The loss that you’re going through, I share indirectly. It’s hit my family too,” she said during the meeting. “My brother. who has lived in Malibu for 40 years. been through many fires. evacuated many times — this time didn’t get away.”.
She described the home as a family place where holidays were spent, and said the loss carried a kind of enduring shock. “The loss of a home is a type of shock and grief that is trauma that will be with us for a long time.”
Even as the civil case moves through the courts, the fire has also been the subject of criminal allegations. Federal prosecutors have charged an alleged arsonist with starting the Palisades fire. Still. attorneys representing civil plaintiffs argue that city and LADWP officials failed to adequately prepare for and respond to the blaze.
Criticism has centered on details tied to firefighting readiness. including the fact that the Santa Ynez reservoir in the Palisades was empty while the fire advanced. LADWP is also accused of failing to maintain adequate water pressure and of having a fire-prone electrical grid—claims the utility has denied.
The master civil lawsuit filed by Palisades fire victims remains in its initial stages. Separately, the city of Malibu filed its own lawsuit accusing the city of Los Angeles, the state, and several other entities of negligent conduct that enabled the fire’s destruction.
The family lawsuit arrives during a campaign season already charged by anger from voters who said Bass didn’t respond fast enough. Mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt built much of his campaign around harsh criticism of Bass’ handling of the Palisades fire and his own frustration after his Pacific Palisades house was destroyed. On Monday, however, Pratt failed to advance to the run-off election.
Bass will now face progressive City Council candidate Nithya Raman on the November ballot.
For Kenneth Bass, the legal complaint is not an abstract act. It is a demand that the losses—smoke inhalation injuries, emotional distress, and mental anguish—be recognized in court. And for Karen Bass. the case is now inseparable from a public contest where the question of what she did during the blaze has been front and center.
Palisades fire Karen Bass Kenneth Bass Los Angeles Superior Court LADWP Malibu lawsuit Santa Ynez reservoir election 2025 Nithya Raman Spencer Pratt
So basically the city’s at fault again?
I don’t get it, wasn’t this fire years ago? Like how is it just now a lawsuit. Also smoke inhalation injuries sounds serious but I feel like everyone will blame everyone until it’s settled.
Wait his sister is Karen Bass and now he’s suing LA… that seems like inside politics. But then it mentions LADWP and Edison and state parks? So who actually did what, sounds messy. Also “master lawsuit” makes it sound like a big pile of claims and nobody’s really accountable.
Smoke inhalation and emotional distress… I believe people were traumatized but doesn’t it depend on whether they got warned or not? I saw something about power lines earlier and I’m like ok so was it electricity or was it the city response time. And 6,800 structures?? That number is insane, I can’t even. Also suing in superior court sounds like a way to drag it out for years.