No Hate Crime Charges For Church Nativity Arson Suspect

NOVATO, CA — A woman suspected of setting fire to a nativity scene and Star of David at a Novato church was ordered to stand trial but will not face hate crime charges.

A Marin County judge ruled prosecutors failed to meet the evidentiary threshold on Monday.

Denise Roberts, 61, is susptected of walking away from the North Bay Christ Church on Redwood Boulevard after setting a brush fire around 6:30 a.m. that spread across a 30-by-30-foot area and climbed to roughly 10 feet in height. Fire crews contained the blaze before it spread beyond the immediate site.

Investigators said the blaze consumed a nativity scene, a cross, and a Star of David, causing about $2,000 in damage.

Police arrested Roberts and booked her into Marin County Jail in July 2025 on suspicion of felony arson and a hate crime.

Officers reported she carried ignition materials at the time of her arrest, according to investigators.

Novato police responded to witnesses who described a woman leaving the area as flames advanced across church property.

Judge Kelly Simmons ruled on April 6 that prosecutors did not present sufficient evidence to proceed on the hate crime count, the Marin Independent Journal reported. The ruling reduces potential sentencing exposure from up to nine years to about six years if Roberts is convicted on the remaining arson charge.

Roberts, a U.S. Navy veteran, pleaded not guilty at a Friday hearing. Her public defender, Jeff Mitchell, is seeking to transfer her to Veterans Administration custody for mental health treatment, according to court filings reported by the Marin IJ.

A follow-up hearing is scheduled for May 5 as the case continues in Marin County Superior Court.

“Bias-based destruction and hate have no place in our city,” the Novato Police Department said in a statement following the arrest.

RELATED: Woman Set Fire At Church, Charged With Hate Crime: Novato Police