Genasys Lawsuit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 17, 2025

LA Fire Justice Announces Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Southern California Edison, Edison International, and Genasys Inc.

‍Lawsuit filed on behalf of Gerry Darden, sister of Stacey Darden

Altadena, CA - The Law Office of Douglas Boxer and the Watts Law Firm, attorneys working with LA Fire Justice, today filed a lawsuit against Genasys Inc., Southern California Edison Company, and Edison International for the wrongful death of Stacey Darden. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Geraldine “Gerry” Darden, sister of Stacey, individually and as a representative of The Estate of Stacey Darden.

“We are not litigious,” said Gerry Darden. “Our family thought long and hard about the decision to file a lawsuit. Edison started this fire, and Genasys never warned her that she was in danger. My sister was studiously following the evacuation orders the night of the Eaton Fire. The truth is that if these companies had done what they were supposed to do, Stacey would be alive today.”

On January 7, 2025, Southern California Edison and Edison International caused the ignition of the Eaton Fire, resulting in 19 deaths, countless injuries, and the devastation of Altadena, Pasadena, and parts of Sierra Madre. The legal team at LA Fire Justice was the first to identify an abandoned transmission line as the source of the fire.

Stacey Darden lived at 2528 Marengo Avenue in Altadena, about five blocks west of Lake Avenue.

The evening of January 7, and into the early morning hours of January 8, Stacey Darden and her sister Gerry consistently monitored the news for the evacuation zones for the Eaton Fire to confirm that Stacey and her home were safe for her to remain in, and that she and her home were not included in an Evacuation Zone / “Polygon”.

While their neighbors to the east of Lake Avenue were receiving an Evacuation Advisory, Evacuation Warning, and two separate Evacuation orders, west Altadena residents, including Stacey Darden, were led to believe that they were safe where they were and that there was no need to evacuate.

Stacey Darden’s last cell phone activity is believed to have been around 3:30 am the morning of January 8^th. The one and only communication regarding an evacuation for Stacey Darden’s Evacuation Zone, a mandatory Evacuation Order, was not issued and directed to her cell phone until 5:43 am on January 8^th. Eighteen of the nineteen Altadena residents who died in the Eaton Fire lived west of Lake Avenue.

“Stacey did everything our community asks of a responsible neighbor in a wildfire, she stayed informed, followed the rules, and trusted that if she was in danger, she would be told to get out,” said attorney Mikal Watts. “Instead, Southern California Edison ignited this fire, and Genasys left Stacey and her neighbors west of Lake Avenue omitted from the designated alert zone. By the time an evacuation order was finally pushed to her phone, it was too late.”

“This is not a tragedy of bad luck, this is a tragedy of corporate failures, and that is why we filed this lawsuit,” Watts concluded.

‍Stacey E. Darden was born on May 19, 1970 in Philadelphia, PA, and her family moved to Southern California in 1978. Her intellectual acumen was apparent at an early age, and she participated in the Mentally Gifted Minors program at Pomelo Elementary. Later she attended Elliott Jr. High School in Altadena, and Pasadena High School. Stacey’s lifelong love of libraries was born, in part, by spending nearly all her free time at the Altadena Library, where she and her sister went to study and read. She went on to graduate from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in Political Science, pursued a career in Library and Information Science, including work at the Caltech Library.

Stacey was an avid consumer of political news and current events. She voraciously read the LA Times every single day and was a devotee of local radio outlets such as KPCC/LAist 98.3, KCRW, KJLH 102.3, and NPR. She was only 54 years old at the time of her death.

“When I joined LA Fire Justice, I promised this community that we would hold wrongdoers accountable for the devastation caused by the Eaton Fire,” said Chris Holden, CEO of LA Fire Justice. “We cannot bring back the lives that were lost, but we can fight to make sure this never happens again. Filing this lawsuit is an essential step toward justice, change and accountability.”

ABOUT US: LA Fire Justice is a coalition of experienced wildfire lawyers, world-class fire origin and causation experts, insurance specialists, and community engagement leaders committed to seeking justice for victims of preventable wildfires. Led by CEO Chris Holden, attorney Doug Boxer, trial attorney Mikal Watts and consumer advocate Erin Brockovich, the work we do is unparalleled in the space, with a team of professionals that are not only some of the most experienced in the business but who care deeply about the work and the communities we serve. We invest locally by taking a long-term lease on an office in Pasadena. We hire local residents to work full-time on engagement and outreach since no one is more qualified than those at the heart of the impacted communities, earning trust with our hands-on, people-focused approach. More information can be found at LAFireJustice.com

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