Ghost Ship master tenant Derick Almena may be jailed over probation violation

OAKLAND -- Alameda County prosecutors have filed a motion to revoke the probation of Derick Almena, the master tenant of the Ghost Ship warehouse in Oakland that burned in 2016, killing 36 people.

A spokesperson for the Alameda County District Attorney's Office told KPIX 5 that the move to revoke Almena's three-year probation was made on September 1 following a search of his home in Mendocino County. Bay Area News Group cited court records as saying probation officers found a .38 caliber bullet on top of a dresser, along with allegedly found a machete and a number of bows and arrows.

California's penal code prohibits convicted felons from buying or possessing any firearm or ammunition. A revoking of Almena's probation could land him back in jail.

As part of a plea deal last year, Almena pleaded guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter and was allowed to serve the remainder of a 12-year sentence at home with an ankle monitor. The sentence was reduced to time served and further shortened by good behavior in jail. 

Victims' family members had urged Alameda County Superior Court Judge Trina Thompson to reject the plea agreement.

"This lenient, slap-on-the-wrist sentence is vastly inappropriate for the crimes Derick Almena committed," one family's statement read. "Upholding the DA's irresponsible plea recommendation would shortchange 36 victims, their families ... We vigorously recommend you reject this plea, and honor all the victims legacies by ethically holding criminality to account."

A prior plea deal that was reached in the case included nine years in prison, but it fell apart when the judge felt Almena did not show remorse for his role in the fire.   

A lengthy trial for Almena and co-defendant Max Harris, the warehouse's artistic director, ended in September 2019 with jurors deadlocked 10-2 in favor of convicting Almena and acquitting Harris of all charges. Harris was released from custody later that day but Almena remained in custody in lieu of $750,000 bail. 

Thompson acknowledged last year that the plea deal was deeply unsatisfactory to those whose loved ones died in the fire but said that a new trial would be complicated by the fact that some key witnesses would be unable to appear due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and the difficulty in seating a jury during the pandemic, among other things.

"I know that no family member will find this in any way acceptable and I accept that responsibility," Thompson said at the time. 

The Ghost Ship fire occurred on the evening of Dec. 2, 2016, during a dance party at the warehouse on the 1300 block of 31st Avenue which served as a live-work space for dozens of artists. The fire was blamed on shoddy electrical wiring throughout the building and following the deadly fire, investigators found numerous fire hazards and code violations. It was also discovered that police and firefighters had seen the non-compliant conditions inside the warehouse during frequent calls about loud parties and tenant disputes, but no corrections were imposed.

Almena was scheduled to appear in court at 9 a.m. Friday at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland.