Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Woman Pleads Not Guilty to Arson and 2 Other Felonies

SANTA CLARITA —  A 22-year-old woman accused of setting a 25-acre Santa Clarita Valley brush fire last week pleaded not guilty Monday to arson and two additional felony charges.

Tammy C. Webster of Sun Valley was arrested Friday in connection with a fire that broke out that morning along Hasley Canyon Road near Backer Road.

Webster also faces a charge of possessing a dangerous weapon, for a club that deputies found, and a charge of possessing methamphetamines, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Damon.

Webster pleaded not guilty to all three felony counts at a hearing in Newhall Municipal Court. She is being held in lieu of $15,283 bail, and a preliminary hearing was set for Dec. 13 at the same court.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Brad Stone stressed that Webster is not a suspect in any of the massive fires that recently swept through Southern California and have been attributed to arson.

“There is no evidence she is involved in any other fire,” Stone said.

No injuries or property damage were caused by Friday’s blaze. Webster was arrested two miles from the scene of the fire, shortly after it was reported.

Witnesses saw a vehicle leaving the scene of the fire and wrote down the license-plate number, said Deputy Benita Hinojos of the Sheriff’s Information Bureau. Deputies picked up Webster a few minutes later in her vehicle, which matched the description seen by the witnesses.

An 18-month-old girl was in the car at the time of the arrest, although her relationship to Webster is unknown, Hinojos said.