The task force kept the investigation carefully compartmentalized. “John Orr is basically a god among arson investigators in the state of California at that time,” said Matassa, who had taken ...

The irony is that the firebug — John Orr — was someone entrusted to protect the public against fire. By some estimates, this one-time chief arson investigator for the Glendale Fire Department ...

Mike Lawler is the former president of the Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley and loves local history. Reach him at [email protected].