This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Hollywood actor James Woods, whose Pacific Palisades home was miraculously spared by the fires ravaging Los Angeles, is now calling for criminal indictments for officials responsible for the lack of water to fight the deadly infernos.
"This is not simply negligence. This is criminal negligence," Woods said on X.
"The DEI vermin responsible for this travesty must be indicted for a catastrophic failure of unimaginable magnitude."
Woods attached a video of Austyn Jeffs of the Free Press who was documenting the scandal of the Santa Ynez Reservoir, which should hold 117 million gallons of water, being dry as the fires broke out last week.
"So how long has this reservoir been empty for?" Jeffs asked out loud. "Since February of last year."
"There was no communication from the Department of Water and Power to LAFD that there was a water supply issue. The firefighters, when they started fighting the fires, no one informed them that the reservoir was empty."
Woods is not the only high-profile voice chiming in about the problems in the Los Angeles government.
Author and journalist Maria Shriver, the ex-wife of Hollywood superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger, said on X: "LA cannot go forward with the status quo. LA is no longer what it was. It has to be different. It has to prioritize the safety of its citizens, police, fire, and schools. LA residents deserve better.
"Chief Crowley is saying LA cannot sustain itself. It needs more help. Chief Crowley says she rang the bell. The mayoral race presented a clear choice last time around. Moving forward, LA residents have to decide what's important and what's not.
"Right now what's important is getting this fire under control, getting firefighters the support they need, getting our neighbors the support they need. Once that happens it's time to rethink what is and imagine what can be."
Shriver attached a video of Los Angeles Fire Chief and LGBT activist Kristin Crowley who criticized Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass for cutting the department's budget by $17 million.
"Let me be clear. The $17 million budget cut and elimination of our civilian positions like our mechanics did and has and will continue to severely impact our ability to repair our apparatus," Crowley told CNN's Jake Tapper.
"Over the last three years, we have been clear that the fire department needs help. We can no longer sustain where we are."
"I have also requested multiple interim budgets … to show how understaffed, under-resourced, and underfunded the LAFD is."
Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., said Friday: "I am calling for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to local fire hydrants and the reported unavailability of water supplies from the Santa Ynez Reservoir.
