Oakland: Witness says Almena laughed at Ghost Ship safety issues
OAKLAND, Calif. (BCN) - A construction trades worker who once was a close friend of Ghost Ship warehouse master tenant Derick Almena testified on Tuesday that Almena scoffed at him when he told Almena that the building in Oakland's Fruitvale neighborhood was unsafe.
Rodney Griffin said when he told Almena in 2014 that he thought the warehouse, which also was called the Satya Yuga Collective, was a death trap, Almena laughed and said, "Ha, ha, we should called it the 'Satya Yuga death trap.'"
Griffin took the witness stand on the second day of testimony in the trial of Derick Almena, 49, and creative director Max Harris, 29, on 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the fire during a music party at the warehouse at 1309 31st Ave. late on the night of Dec. 2, 2016, that killed 36 people.
Alameda County prosecutor Casey Bates alleged in his opening statement last week that Almena and Harris are criminally liable for the fire because there was no time and no way for the people at the party to escape since the warehouse didn't have important safeguards, such as fire extinguishers, smoke alarms and exit signs.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/ghost-ship-fire/witness-says-ghost-ship-warehouse-fire-started-quickly
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