Due to a number of cases of Covid-19 in Santa Rita Jail, where Ghost Ship master- tenant Derick Almena was housed, an Alameda County Superior Court Judge has decided to release the 50 year-old….although he will be electronically monitored. That’s, in-part, because Almena’s health has been deteriorating. He was first incarcerated in 2017, shortly after the Ghost Ship Fire….in which 36 people died and a number of others were injured. Almena’s re-trial, which was expected to begin this month, has been delayed until July 6th. His co-defendant Max Harris, who faced the same three dozen charges of involuntary manslaughter — one for every person killed in the blaze in Oakland — was found Not Guilty, and released from jail.
