Judge digs deeper into PG&E’s suspected role in Dixie Fire

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE
AP Business Writer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Pacific Gas & Electric troubleshooter spent nearly two hours in federal court Monday fielding questions about whether the utility could have turned off the electricity sooner on a power line suspected of sparking the monstrous Dixie Fire two months ago. The grilling came before a federal judge who is overseeing PG&E’s criminal probation after the utility’s gas lines blew up part of a suburban neighborhood in 2010. The judge is weighing whether he should impose more stringent conditions on PG&E before his authority expires in January. PG&E says it shares the judge’s concern for safety.