Crime & Safety

Hundreds Of Potential Ghost Ship Trial Jurors Complete Paperwork

Jury selection will take place later this month.

Bay City News, News Partner
36 people died in the inferno in December 2016
36 people died in the inferno in December 2016 (Alameda County Sheriff's Office)

OAKLAND, CA — The judge in the trial of Ghost Ship warehouse master tenant Derick Almena and creative director Max Harris said on Wednesday that 320 potential jurors have filled out questionnaires so far and another 160 will do so soon.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Trina Thompson said the first 320 potential jurors came to court on Monday and Tuesday and will be followed by an additional panel of 80 people on Thursday afternoon and one more panel of 80 people on April 18.

Thompson said she possibly would call one last panel of 80 people after that "if it's absolutely necessary" to get enough qualified jurors for the highly publicized case.

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Almena, 48, and Harris, 29, are charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the fire during a music party at the warehouse at 1309 31st Ave. on Dec. 2, 2016.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin next Tuesday. Thompson previously said she hopes that it can be completed in two weeks and that opening statements will be presented on April 30 and May 1, followed by testimony on May 6.

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Thompson held a short hearing on Wednesday morning about what testimony and evidence will be allowed during the trial and scheduled another hearing on that issue for Thursday.

Among the matters that will discussed on Thursday are subpoenas for potential witnesses in the case, including the defense's request that Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf be ordered to testify.

The defense wants to call Schaaf and other Oakland city officials, such as firefighters and police officers, to bolster its argument that the people who were most responsible for the fire were the warehouse's owners and government officials who knew about safety issues at the building but didn't do enough to correct them.

— Bay City News

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