GUILTY CA - Massive fire at Oakland warehouse party, 36 dead, 2 Dec 2016 #3

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Niner said:
Just :bump: ing for tomorrow!

Tuesday, January 2nd:
*Pretrial Hearing - CA - Ghost Ship Warehouse Fire in Oakland on Dec. 2, 2016 killing 36 people - Derick Ion Almena (47), and Max Harris (27), charged with 36 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter; entered their not guilty pleas. They remain in custody at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin on $750,000 bond and face up to 39 years in prison each if convicted. 12/15 Update: Two California men will go to trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in the deaths of 36 partygoers in the worst building fire in the U.S. in more than a decade, a judge ruled Thursday.

:judge:
Click to expand...

May justice prevail!

Thank you, Niner! Happy New Year.
 
Any "new" news on what happened yesterday??

TIA! :wave:

And Happy New Year to you too EuTuCroquet? and everyone else reading here!!!

:fireworks:
 
Ghost Ship Defendant Max Harris will Receive Public Funds For Defense

OAKLAND (CBS SF) — An Alameda County Superior Court judge granted an unusual motion Tuesday morning to allow the use of public money to cover the cost of defending Max Harris, who stands accused of 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the 2016 Ghost Ship fire in Oakland.

“It’s unusual, but under extreme circumstances the law does allow for it,” Harris’ lead attorney Curtis Briggs said of the ruling by Judge James Cramer.

Briggs will be reimbursed at a rate of $115 per hour out of county funds through the Criminal Court Appointed Attorneys Program, which is in place to provide effective legal counsel for indigent defendants.

“It’s probably less than a third of my hourly rate,” Briggs said. “But it will sustain us through the next six months.”
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http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/20...efendant-to-receive-public-funds-for-defense/

Briggs said his firm has already worked about 800 billable hours which will not be paid for. Almena's attorney said he won't be asking for public funds and is working pro bono.
 
:bump: up for today's hearing:

Tuesday, February 20th:
*Pretrial Hearing - CA - Ghost Ship Warehouse Fire in Oakland on Dec. 2, 2016 killing 36 people - Derick Ion Almena (47), and Max Harris (27), charged with 36 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter; entered their not guilty pleas. They remain in custody at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin on $750,000 bond and face up to 39 years in prison each if convicted. 12/15/17 Update: Two California men will go to trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in the deaths of 36 partygoers in the worst building fire in the U.S. in more than a decade, a judge ruled Thursday.Both are expected to plead not guilty on Feb. 20; trial expected to start later this year.


:judge:
 
Almena and Harris plead not guilty in Ghost Ship Fire case

No surprise.

The not guilty pleas by Almena, 47, and Harris, 28, came at a routine procedural hearing following their preliminary hearing last December, at which a judge ruled that prosecutors produced sufficient evidence to have them stand trial.

Almena and Harris, who face up to 39 years in state prison if they're convicted, remain in custody in lieu of $750,000 bail but will seek to have their bail lowered or even be released on their own recognizance when they return to court on March 21 for a bail hearing.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Morris Jacobson also scheduled a hearing on April 13 on a defense motion to have the charges against Almena and Harris dismissed and their trial to begin on July 16 if that motion is denied.
...
Serra also argued that the warehouse was not a fire trap and alleged that the building's owner, Chor Ng, who fled to China after the fire, "had primary responsibility" for the blaze.

Serra also alleged that the Oakland Fire Department knew about the conditions at the warehouse but didn't take any action and "is far more culpable" than Almena.

Serra said today that defense attorneys will make similar arguments if the case goes to trial.

Almena and Harris have both previously sought to be released without bail but have been unsuccessful.

However, Serra said today that the defense believes it has a good chance of being successful at the March 21 bail hearing because of a recent appellate court ruling that judges can't set high bail amounts for low-income people who can't afford to pay unless they represent a danger if they are released.
Click to expand...

http://www.ktvu.com/news/almena-and-harris-plead-not-guilty-in-ghost-ship-fire-case

March 21 - Bail hearing.
April 13 - Hearing on defense motion to dismiss.
July 16 - Trial date if defense motion is denied.

All subject to change.
 
:tyou: MsMarple for the update! Very much appreciated! :wave:
 
Y'all are gonna love reading this 21-page letter that Derick Almena sent to KTVU:

Snippets from the article:

Many of Almena’s written accusations repeat the same claims he first made during 2 Investigates’ exclusive jailhouse interview last year. But among the scattered new details that emerged in the letter, Almena says that he suffers from a personality disorder called ‘schizotypal,’ that is marked by disturbing thoughts, paranoia, anxiety, and what he called “over-protective tendencies, as a father and over those close to me.”

Throughout the letter, Almena emphasized the impact that the tragedy and its fallout has had on his family. He laments that although they received financial help from the Red Cross immediately after the fire, his family was denied assistance from and YouCare fundraising campaigns.

“Through our lawyers Tony Serra and Jeff Krasnoff, we informed the – and YouCare – that thousands of dollars were donated by friends, family, and strangers thinking it would get directly to our family. They made excuses and led us to believe that they had set aside funds for the children, but that never happened.”
Click to expand...
http://www.ktvu.com/news/2-investig...almena-sends-21-page-jailhouse-letter-to-ktvu

Direct link to entire letter:
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/4402789/Feb-2018-Statement-Almena.pdf

Oy vey! Almena doing what he does best - pointing fingers at anyone and everyone... except himself. He and wife Micah are Good Samaritans and wonderful parents. Micah prays a lot.

Almena says "We have never tested positive for drugs." Note that he doesn't say "we don't take drugs." Poor Derick. Everyone conspires against him. :puke:
 
MsMarple said:
Y'all are gonna love reading this 21-page letter that Derick Almena sent to KTVU:

Snippets from the article:


http://www.ktvu.com/news/2-investig...almena-sends-21-page-jailhouse-letter-to-ktvu

Direct link to entire letter:
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/4402789/Feb-2018-Statement-Almena.pdf

Oy vey! Almena doing what he does best - pointing fingers at anyone and everyone... except himself. He and wife Micah are Good Samaritans and wonderful parents. Micah prays a lot.

Almena says "We have never tested positive for drugs." Note that he doesn't say "we don't take drugs." Poor Derick. Everyone conspires against him. :puke:
Click to expand...

I wish his lawyer would tell him to shut up and remain silent.
 
KaaBoom said:
I wish his lawyer would tell him to shut up and remain silent.
Click to expand...
He no doubt has lol. He is (among other things) a lawyer's worst nightmare.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
 
Thanks, Firrewhisper, for that article. It took my breath away to hear the fireman speak about being in charge of that horrible event. I'm sure his heart is still heavy with grief at what he tried to fight and simply could not begin to contain what happened in that firetrap building. That one will stay with me for a while. What a sad, sad account of one whose job could only mainly be defensive. And then the next day, and the next...

This is a bit late, but

:wagon:

​
[FONT=comic\ sans\ ms]to Websleuths,

[/FONT]:skip:[FONT=comic\ sans\ ms]Firrewhisper[/FONT][FONT=comic\ sans\ ms]!![/FONT]:skip:
[FONT=comic\ sans\ ms]
We're glad you're with us![/FONT]

:greetings:
​
 
a small :bump:

Wednesday, March 21st:
*Bail Hearing - CA - Ghost Ship Warehouse Fire in Oakland on Dec. 2, 2016 killing 36 people - Derick Ion Almena (47), and Max Harris (27), charged with 36 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter; entered their not guilty pleas. $750K bond for each. They remain in custody at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin and face up to 39 years in prison each if convicted.
12/15/17 Update: Two California men will go to trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in the deaths of 36 partygoers in the worst building fire in the U.S. in more than a decade, a judge ruled Thursday.
2/20 Update: Both pled not guilty; Defense will seek to have their bail lowered or even be released on their own recognizance when they return to court on March 21 for a bail hearing. April 13th hearing on Defense motion to dismiss, and trial to start July 16th, if Defense motion to dismiss is denied.

:judge:
 
Anyone know if bail was granted??

TIA!
 
Are they OUT?? or still in jail....

TIA!
 
Thanks a bunch MsMarple! :wave:
 
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