Jurors Dismissed in Ghost Ship Trial May Be Held in Contempt for Misconduct: Judge
By NBC Bay Area staff ••
Two of the three jurors dismissed from the Ghost Ship trial broke court order and could be held in contempt for misconduct, Judge Trina Thompson said Tuesday. Melissa Colorado reports.
Two of the three jurors dismissed from the Ghost Ship trial broke court order and could be held in contempt for misconduct, Judge Trina Thompson said Tuesday.
Thompson, who said the misconduct incident occurred last Thursday, still needs more information on the third "non-offending" juror.
The details released Tuesday come a day after three jurors were replaced with alternatives in the trial of two men charged with involuntary manslaughter stemming from the 2016 Oakland warehouse fire.
The changes in the jury means deliberations must now start over.
Thirty-six people died in the blaze during a party at the so-called Ghost Ship warehouse back in December 2016.
The prosecution has accused Derick Almena and Max Harris of 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter. Almena and Harris face a maximum term of 39 years in state prison if they are convicted on all 36 counts.
The trial started on April 30 with 12 jurors and six alternates, but there's now only one alternate left, as Thompson previously dismissed one juror on May 1, the second day of the trial, for undisclosed reasons and dismissed another juror on May 9 for what she described as "veracity issues."
OaklandGhostShip.com
On Dec. 3, 2016, a three-alarm fire broke out at an Oakland warehouse killing at least nine people, with at least two dozen others still unaccounted for. This image and subsequent others are from inside the building commonly referred to as the "Oakland Ghost Ship."
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The building was considered an artist's conclave, cluttered with wood workers, sculptors, painters and more.
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City officials described the building as a "labyrinth of artist studios."
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A Facebook event page indicates that the fire happened during a Golden Donna show, which was promoted by Los Angeles-based dance label 100% Silk.
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Battalion Chief Lisa Baker said the building was "subdivided into other occupancies" and between 50 and 100 people were partying on the upper floor.
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An official with the Oakland Planning Department said the building was only permitted for use as a warehouse.
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City officials are investigating whether people were living in the warehouse illegally before the lethal fire.
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The party that young electronic music fans flocked to "would require a special permit from the city, and such a permit had not been issued," said an official.
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It is common knowledge, according to a neighbor, that artists lived inside the warehouse and left all sorts of junk — including RVs and odds-and-ends — outside, drawing scavengers.
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Oakland property records indicate that the warehouse is owned by the Chor N. Ng trust.nA family member speaking on behalf of Ng said they were "trying to figure out what happened just like everyone else" and were "sorry to hear of [the tragedy] and those injured and killed."
Ajesh Shah
Ajesh Shah, 35, of Oakland took photos of the art inside the Ghost Ship several times before. He shared these photos with NBC Bay Area.
Ajesh Sheh
Not only was the artists' “labyrinth” filled with a bevy of artwork, wooden pieces, electrical wires, Hindu god statues and even a gun, but the stairwell, decorated with pink lights, was makeshift, too. He took a photo of the staircase two years ago. Pictured above: The staircase inside the Ghost Ship warehouse that burned down on Dec. 2, 2016, taken in 2014.
Ajesh Shah
“We gathered to have interesting conversations about embracing different art forms,” Ajesh Shah told NBC Bay Area.
Ajesh Shah
The inside space of the warehouse on East 31st Avenue was both beautiful and a “disaster waiting to happen,” Ajesh Shah said. That's why he only hosted one event, "partly, because I did not feel like I wanted to use the space again because of safety in and outside the venue."
Prosecutors allege that Almena and Harris are criminally responsible for the fire because the people at the party didn't have the time or opportunity to escape the blaze since the warehouse lacked important safeguards such as fire sprinklers, smoke alarms and lighted exit signs.
Prosecutors also allege that Almena and Harris violated the terms of the building's lease, which only called for it to be used as a warehouse for an artists' collective, by turning it into a living space for up to 25 people and hosting underground music parties there.
But defense attorneys allege that the fire was an act of arson that Almena and Harris couldn't have prevented and say firefighters, police officers and other authorities who visited the building before the deadly fire never told the two men that they thought it was unsafe or that they needed to make changes to bring it up to code.
The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.
