<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=27cs7d_1H4Lig7H00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=27cs7d_1H4Lig7H00" width="400" height="500" ><figcaption>Butte County District Attorney's Office</figcaption></figure>CHICO, Calif. — A woman with a history of setting fires in Chico is facing new arson charges after police say she set a string of fires in the downtown area.Michael Ashley Childers-Marchick, 40, appeared in Butte County Superior Court to be arraigned on 2 counts of intentional arson, as well as having a prior strike conviction.According to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey, the charges stem from multiple calls to the Chico Police Department about 4 fires that broke out starting at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 9, 2026, in the Humboldt Skate Park and City Plaza areas of downtown Chico.Officers investigated 4 small grass and brush fires that all occurred within approximately 1 hour. The fires appeared to lead from the Little Chico Creek area at the intersection of Humboldt Avenue and Olive Street, to the areas of Humboldt Avenue and Wall Street, Flume Street and 6th Street, and finally to the Old Chico City Hall area near Main Street and 5th Street.During that investigation, police received a fifth call reporting a fire being set at the Chico Ice Rink in Chico City Plaza. Workers who were setting up the rink for its grand opening on Nov. 12 reported seeing Childers-Marchick using a torch lighter to burn holes in a plastic tarp along the side of the ice rink.Officers responded and arrested Childers-Marchick after a brief struggle. A search of Childers-Marchick turned up a torch lighter in her pants pocket, and a later investigation placed her in the areas of the earlier fires at the times those fires were set.This is not Childers-Marchick's first run-in with arson charges. She was convicted of arson in 2020 for a trail of fires she set along Lower Bidwell Park before being apprehended near the Caper Acres Playground in Chico, receiving a 6-year prison sentence.She was then convicted of attempted arson in 2023 after she was caught holding a lighter against a north Chico office building, causing smoke and scorch marks before a witness chased her off and law enforcement later apprehended her. She received a 3-year state prison sentence for that attempt.The judge set bail at $250,000 and ordered Childers-Marchick returned to Butte County Jail until her next court appearance on Nov. 18, 2026, for entry of plea. If convicted, she faces a maximum of 18 years in state prison.Anyone with additional information about the Nov. 9, 2026, fires is encouraged to contact the Chico Police Department.</div></body>

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CHICO, Calif. — A woman with a history of setting fires in Chico is facing new arson charges after police say she set a string of fires in the downtown area. Michael Ashley Childers-Marchick, 40, appeared in Butte County Superior Court to be arraigned on 2 counts of intentional arson, as well as having a prior strike conviction.

Chico arsonist faces 18 years after downtown fire spree

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CHICO, Calif. — A woman with a history of setting fires in Chico is facing new arson charges after police say she set a string of fires in the downtown are

Chico arsonist faces 18 years after downtown fire spree

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