On June 5, 2017, Ghost Ship master tenant Derick Almena and his second-in-command, Max Harris, were arrested and charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in conjunction with the December 2, 2016, Ghost Ship fire that killed three dozen people. “The paying guests at the event were faced with a nearly impossible labyrinth of the defendants’ making to get out of that building,” said Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley at a news conference. “Almena and Harris’ actions were reckless and they created the high risk of death.”
O’Malley indicated that her six month investigation was complete, but also did not rule out the possibility of additional criminal charges.
The day following the arrests, attorney Chris Dolan called for criminal charges to be brought against Chor Ng, the owner of the warehouse.
“Civil liability against the owner is not enough,” Chris told KGO-TV news on June 6, 2017. “I’ve been in that building. There’s no way this landlord could not have known what was going on in there.” Dolan added, “Unless this landlord is held responsible, the message will not go out to the other landlords that they need to know what’s going on in their buildings.”
The Dolan Law Firm represents families whose loved ones died in the Ghost Ship fire lawsuit.
