Some relatives of those killed in the Oakland warehouse fire in 2016 said they were outraged that prosecutors had a deal with the defendant that they said would allow him to avoid additional time behind bars.
Ghost Ship master tenant Derick Almena pleaded guilty Friday (January 22) to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the Oakland warehouse fire that killed 36 people, including three who identified as transgender, on December 2, 2016.
Man pleads guilty to 36 deaths from Ghost Ship warehouse blaze
January 22, 2021 / 3:41 PM / CBS/AP
The master tenant of a San Francisco Bay Area warehouse where 36 people perished when a fire ignited during a 2016 dance party pleaded guilty Friday to the deaths, avoiding a second trial after the first ended in a hung jury. Derick Almena, 50, pleaded guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in exchange for a 12-year sentence.
Already free on bail, Almena likely won t return to jail because of the nearly three years he already spent behind bars and credit for good behavior.
Alameda County Superior Court Judge Trina Thompson read each count with the name of the victim. When she asked Almena his plea for each charge, he answered guilty, but his quiet responses were sometimes inaudible through an online stream of the hearing held virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Ghost Ship master tenant pleads guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter
Published
KTVU s Brooks Jarosz
OAKLAND, Calif. - The master tenant of a cluttered, dilapidated warehouse where 36 people died in a fire pleaded guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter on Friday in a deal that will likely mean he won t spend any more time behind bars.
Derick Almena is expected to be sentenced to 12 years in prison, but because of good behavior and time served, the 50-year-old artist and former master tenant of the Ghost Ship warehouse will not be spending any more time in custody.
The 36 counts stem from the 36 lives lost during a house party fire in what s now infamously known as the Ghost Ship fire on Dec. 2, 2016.
Derick Almena, defendant in deadly Ghost Ship fire, expected to accept plea deal, avoid second trial
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The remains of the Ghost Ship warehouse, where 36 people died in a fire in 2016.Noah Berger / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
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Derick Almena was charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter he is now expected to accept a plea deal that will spare him prison time.Courtesy of the Lake County Sheriff’s OfficeShow MoreShow Less
The remaining defendant charged in the deaths of 36 people in Oakland’s Ghost Ship warehouse fire is expected to accept a plea deal that will keep him from prison and prevent him from undergoing a second trial, a victim’s family member said.