A lawyer for some of the men accused of causing the Corral Fire in Malibu on Thanksgiving weekend say they thought the campfire was out when they left the canyon. Andrew Blankstein updates the story in Saturday's LAT.

Outside the Van Nuys courthouse, lawyers for Anderson and Coppock said their clients were remorseful but did not start the campfire, nor did they know that it had not been fully extinguished, allowing high winds to carry embers into the brush, igniting the blaze.

"When they left Malibu, they believed they had extinguished the fire," said attorney John J. Duran, who is representing Anderson.

"This was not intentional, which is key to a criminal case," added Coppock's lawyer, attorney Andrew Flier. "This is a civil matter. They are the scapegoats in this case."

Prosecutors are seeking enhanced jail time, alleging that the fire was set in an area where a state of emergency had been declared after fires in October.

"This wasn't an 'oops,' " Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley said in a statement. "The law is clear. You cannot go into a high-fire danger area and for whatever reason build a fire. It's not only a recipe for disaster, it's a criminal act."

A bail hearing is set for Dec. 21.

Latigo Canyon in ashes.