South Carolina Circuit Court Judge Diane Goodstein’s vacation home burned nearly to the ground on Saturday, and the cause of the fire is being investigated.
Law enforcement officials in the state told NBC there was no evidence the fire was the result of arson “at this time,” although the investigation is ongoing.
Goodstein, 69, was on a walk with her dogs on the beach when an “apparent explosion” went off, South Carolina Chief Justice John Kittredge told The Guardian.
Her husband, Arnold Goodstein, their son and one other person jumped from the home’s elevated first floor to the ground. “I’m told there were injuries from the fall, such as broken legs,” Kittredge said.
Rescue services retrieved them from the water in kayaks. A helicopter then took Arnold Goodstein to the Medical University of South Carolina.
“At this time, we do not know whether the fire was accidental or arson. Until that determination is made, (South Carolina Law Enforcement Division) chief Mark Keel has alerted local law enforcement to provide extra patrols and security,” Kittredge added.
Was this a political attack?
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is still investigating the cause of the fire.
SLED Chief Mark Keel told NBC News that “at this time there is no evidence to indicate the fire was intentionally set” and that SLED agents “have preliminarily found there is no evidence to support a pre-fire explosion.”
Keel urged “citizens, elected officials, and members of the press to exercise good judgment and not share information that has not been verified.”
Goodstein had been under scrutiny and had received death threats in the weeks leading up to the fire, Time magazine reported.
In September, Goodstein temporarily blocked South Carolina’s election commission from releasing voter information to the Justice Department. The decision was quickly reversed by South Carolina’s Supreme Court.
The fire quickly led to partisan bickering over who was to blame.
On Sunday night, Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., claimed on X the fire was lit by “the extreme right” and was the fault of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and President Donald Trump “doxxing and threatening judges who rule against (them).”
Miller responded that the Trump administration was trying to “combat and prosecute illegal doxing, sinister threats and political violence.”
Miller then referenced Democratic candidate for Virginia attorney general, Jay Jones, who has recently come under fire for politically violent text messages sent in 2022.
“While you post your libelous madness, we will keep focused on delivering public safety and fighting domestic terror,” Miller said.