Ghost Ship Warehouse Fire

Derick Almena was released from Santa Rita Jail in Dublin on $150,000 bail amid coronavirus concerns. 

Derick Almena, who is awaiting retrial in the deadly Ghost Ship warehouse fire in Oakland, is set to be released from jail Monday amid concerns of the coronavirus, KTVU has learned.

A teleconference with a judge is scheduled for Friday morning to discuss potential conditions of release, according to one of Almena’s attorneys.

The retrial of Derick Almena, the master-tenant of the Oakland Ghost Ship fire where 36 lives were lost, has been delayed until July because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A retrial in the deadly Ghost Ship fire for defendant Derick Almena is delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis. 

The attorney for Ghost Ship master tenant Derick Almena said on Friday that he and Almena are ready for a second trial on 36 involuntary manslaughter charges for a fire at the Oakland building in 2016 that killed 36 people.

A bankruptcy judge ruled Tuesday that the case is no longer on hold and the victims’ families can sue the PG&E in state court.

Almena's lead attorney Tony Serra filed a motion on Monday that there's good cause to release the personal identifying information of the jurors in the first trial because they may be willing to share information to assist the defense in the retrial.

The utility company announced a $13.5B settlement with individual Northern California wildfire victims on Friday. It includes settlements for claims from the Ghost Ship fire in Oakland.

Alameda County prosecutors can no longer criminally charge Ghost Ship warehouse owner Chor Ng and her two children Kai and Eva Ng with involuntary manslaughter.

Monday December 2, 2019 marks three years since the Ghost Ship Warehouse fire killed 36 people in Oakland.

Derick Almena will be retried on manslaughter charges in the Ghost Ship warehouse fire in Oakland that killed 36 people, Alameda County prosecutors said Friday, a month after a judge declared a mistrial in his case. 

Ghost Ship master tenant Derick Almena spoke to KTVU in his first interview since a jury hung on his fate in the deadly warehouse fire in Oakland, a day before he learns whether prosecutors will retry him.   "I want to go home. Now. Soon. Tomorrow," Almena said during an hourlong interview Thursday at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.

One of the jurors from the Ghost Ship trial said on Friday that initially, one of the members on the panel insisted that Max Harris was guilty. 

This is the Ghost Ship Trial blog by KTVU crime reporter Henry Lee and KTVU staff. Check back here for continuous updates on the case.

The Ghost Ship trial resumes on Tuesday, taking a break for the Memorial Day holiday.

A judge has ruled Derick Almena & Max Harris must stand trial for involuntary manslaughter in Ghost Ship warehouse fire. The preliminary hearing continued on Thursday.