A federal jury has ruled that the City of Richmond, Cornerstone Trading Group, and owner Seth Smith are liable for the massive 2023 warehouse fire that displaced roughly 2,000 residents . Jurors found the city and company negligent, saying they ignored long?standing safety concerns and failed to address hazardous conditions at the NW F Street plastic recycling site where the fire began on April 11th, 2023.  The verdict assigns 60% responsibility to Cornerstone and Smith and 40% to the city. The next phase will determine damages for property owners and displaced residents included in the class action, which was certified last year.