Prosecutors Built a Case From Thinking Out Loud

A man accused of arson in LA's deadliest wildfire was convicted partly using his ChatGPT search history—images of fire, prompts about accelerants, questions about detection. The evidence works because it catches the gap between private thought and public action, but it also means every exploratory question becomes testimony.

ChatGPT logs admitted as evidence alongside location data and witness testimony in California arson trial

Defendant's search history included fire imagery requests and questions about fire behavior and detection evasion

Sets precedent for AI conversation logs as admissible evidence in criminal prosecutions