LAKEPORT, Calif. – The man who converted and operated the Oakland warehouse known as the “Ghost Ship” that burned in December 2016, claiming the lives of 36 people, was arrested in Lake County on Monday and made a court appearance later in the day.
Derick Ion Almena, 47, who founded the Ghost Ship collective and held a lease for the warehouse, was taken into custody on a felony $1 million arrest warrant at around 9 a.m. on Monday, according to Lake County Jail booking records.
Almena's booking sheet lists him as a set designer and stage builder, and gives his address as Upper Lake.
Sheriff Brian Martin told Lake County News that his agency picked up Almena as a courtesy on the Alameda County District Attorney's arrest warrant.
Martin confirmed that Almena has recently been staying in Lake County.
Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley announced on Monday morning that she had filed felony charges against Almena and another man, Max Harris – a Ghost Ship tenant arrested the same day in Southern California – for the deadly “Ghost Ship” fire on Dec. 2, 2016.
The warehouse had been an unpermitted living and work space subleased to many artists and also was a concert venue when it was destroyed in the fire, authorities said.
Both Almena and Harris are charged with 36 counts of of involuntary manslaughter – a count each for the 36 people who died in the fire, O'Malley's office said.
“We continue to mourn the loss of 36 young and vibrant men and women, 36 members of our community who should be with us today,” said O’Malley. “Defendants Almena and Harris knowingly created a fire trap with inadequate means of escape, filled it with human beings, and are now facing the consequences of their deadly actions.”
On Monday afternoon, Almena appeared in Lake County Superior Court before Judge Stephen Hedstrom.
Almena, who was brought into the courtroom shortly after 3 p.m. wearing a green and white jumpsuit, was seated in the jury box.
Sterling Thayer, a defense attorney with the county’s indigent defense contract, was on hand to advise him of his rights.
Hedstrom appeared in court about 40 minutes after Almena was first brought in, apologizing for the delay and explaining he had only just found out he would be handling the appearances of Almena and about four other inmates in the courtroom and had needed to review their files.
Taking Almena’s case first, Hedstrom explained that Almena had been taken into custody on an arrest warrant issued by the Alameda County Superior Court.
Hedstrom told Almena he was charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter, with his bail set at approximately $1,080,000 by an Alameda County judge.
During the brief court appearance, Hedstrom went on to explain to Almena that Alameda County authorities should have been notified of his arrest.
The law enforcement agency handling his case, Hedstrom added, has five days from the time of that notice of Almena’s arrest to come and take custody of him.
With Almena having no cases pending in Lake County, Hedstrom said there are no holds that would prevent him from being released back to Alameda County.
When Hedstrom asked Almena if he had any questions, Almena said no.
Once the matter concluded, bailiffs immediately took Almena from the courtroom.
O'Malley said her office launched the criminal investigation within hours of the fire, “and we have worked steadily for the past six months to ensure that those responsible for these deaths are brought to justice.”
Alameda County's investigative team consisted of two attorneys, three district attorney inspectors, and multiple victim-witness advocates, which conducted in excess of 75 individual witness interviews, executed more than 12 search warrants, reviewed more than 6,000 thousand pages of investigative reports, and examined and cataloged over 300 individual pieces of physical evidence.
O'Malley said her team – which worked with multiple other agencies, including the Oakland Fire Department, the Oakland Police Department, the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms – met regularly to analyze the case.
She said that, to prosecute a manslaughter case based on criminal negligence, she must be satisfied “that any defendant acted with gross or reckless conduct akin to a disregard for human life, and that the deadly consequences of those actions were reasonably foreseeable,” according to her Monday statement.
O’Malley’s office concluded that the actions of Almena and Harris were reckless, creating a high risk of death, and were the proximate cause of the death of the 36 individuals trapped inside the warehouse when the fire started.
The case's declaration of probable cause stated that Almena and Harris acted knowingly and with disregard by allowing individuals to live in the warehouse while deceiving the police, fire department and owners about that fact; allowed large groups to assemble in the warehouse for musical events in the space and on the night of the fire they actually blocked one of two means of egress; conducted unpermitted and uninspected construction, including electrical work; and allowed the floor to ceiling storage of large quantities of highly flammable materials that created a deadly and dangerous space.
O'Malley said both men will be arraigned once they return to Alameda County.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
