OAKLAND

but... evil brown people!

killing helpless white folks!

at least make them neo-nazi arsonists ... oof

ugggh wtf

alt-truth

besides being racist as fuck, this is the stupidest argument, because the point of fire code rules, is to make sure people in a building can get out of the building if there is a fire, regardless of whether it's an accident or intentional. ...

Looks like Almena's going that route too, per posts yesterday:

"It's May Day and it's beautitul outside."

So started Derick Almena defense attorney Tony Serra's opening statement in the #GhostShipTrial today. He echoed Briggs' arson theory yesterday, and rejected descriptions of Almena as a "despot" and "tyrant."

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) May 1, 2019

Serra said witnesses will testify fire officials visited Ghost Ship socially, and that fire inspector Maria Sabatini actually inspected the space, although she denies it. "She crossed herself in front of one of the statues of the Virgin Mary," he said.

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) May 1, 2019

Of course Serra also emphasized Almena wasn't there that night. He argued that Ghost Ship was actually safe, not a fire trap, but that it doesn't matter because "no act or omission" of Almena's led to the fire, because he couldn't prevent arson.

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) May 1, 2019

repulsive

He argued that Ghost Ship was actually safe, not a fire trap, but that it doesn't matter because "no act or omission" of Almena's led to the fire, because he couldn't prevent arson.

see also: guns don't kill people

brown people kill people iirc

Jesus.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/key-witness-dies-ghost-ship-warehouse_n_5cd130f0e4b0e4d757377ade

Yup, those fucks went for it.

At the #GhostShipTrial today so far the defense called key witness Sharon Evans, who testified she saw 14-19 "Spaniards" in dark hoodies at a taco truck shortly after the fire started, several of whom were boasting that no one was going to make it out of the warehouse alive.

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) June 10, 2019

This witness, central to the arson defense, testified over strenuous objections from the prosecution, which highlighted inconsistencies in her recollections during cross-examination. She also said she noticed smoke from the fire around 9:30pm, well before we know it started.

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) June 10, 2019

Spaniards!

Were they eating tapas and drinking tempranillo?

Guessing they were Basque separatists?

good lord

i've been avoiding reading about the fire since i lost some good friends in it, but christ, that is some despicable, despicable shit.

Could have been flamenco dancers...

xp -- super gross, right? this is part of why I'm seriously considering becoming a lawyer

I'm also wondering why the prosecution didn't pursue the fact Almena avoided getting permits and following the legal procedures to ensure safety of the building, as well as legal procedures to operate in the city.

Like, this is the way things are supposed to work:
1. dude wants to rent a building and sublet portions of the building to other people for art studios. Let's say, for the sake of argument, that dude isn't a piece of shit but is relatively clever.
2. dude goes to the city to get a business license. ... this activity is a business, and he is required to pay business tax. The need to get a business license is often prompted by the need to get a separate bank account so that one's tenants can feel comfortable that the dude they are paying rent to is on the up-and-up and he isn't commingling their rent money with his personal funds, and at some point in the not so distant future, the tenants find out they are being evicted due to non-payment of rent because the dude that is supposed to be paying the building owner has appropriated their rent money for personal use. (This happens often enough. Even underground and anarchist types will advocate for having a business bank account for this reason -- so they don't get fucked over by a sketchy master tenant.)
3. So at the business license office at 250 Frank H Ogawa Plaza, someone would tell him that in order to get the license he needs a zoning clearance
4. So then dude would go to the Planning and Zoning counter -- also in 250 Frank H Ogawa Plaza -- in order to get the zoning clearance -- and takes a number and waits
4a. Almena strikes me as the kind of person that would not take well to the sitting and waiting that constitutes most people's experience of 250 Frank H Ogawa Plaza.
5. The wait to talk to someone about getting a zoning clearance is usually not that bad. The counter staff that handles this are usually like, lowest on the hierarchy. In theory, what they're supposed to do is assess what the person wants to do in a specific building and in broad strokes tell them what other things they would need to do in order to legally do the thing they want to do in that building, and what other departments they will need to take numbers to wait to talk to.
6. So, a hypothetical conversation between Almena and planning & zoning person would go something like this. We will call planning & zoning person, Chet. We will also omit a bunch of technical terms and stuff about filling out forms and misunderstandings and clarifications, because this would be super long if I included them.

Chet: How can I help you? What's the property address?
Almena: (gives address of building)
Chet: And what are you looking to do there?
Almena: looking to do?
Chet: what type of business?
Almena: uh, artist studios
Chet: studios? like .... live/work?
Almena: Uh, well, maybe?
Chet: if you want to convert this building to live/work, you would need to do a lot, as this building is a storage warehouse
Almena: Like, what is a lot?
Chet: Well, you probably want to talk to a senior planner about that because it's really complicated, (mentions multiple departments and a lot of things)
Almena: what if they aren't live/work? Like, just artists making art?
Chet: Well, that would be a lot simpler. ... The building's current occupancy is listed as storage, so studios, that would probably be ... a different occupancy. So, at minimum, you will want to speak to a planner and make an appointment with Fire so they can schedule an inspection and see what you need to do

....

Sad, powerful story about the parent of a Ghost Ship Fire victim who goes to the trial every day. By my homie colleague @haileybranson whom all my followers should follow!https://t.co/pRWUxpU5PP

— GustavoArellano (@GustavoArellano) June 11, 2019

this shit is infuriating. look I think Serra is partly right, the owners deserve to share in the blame. But manufaturing this arson shit? give me a break.

Defense lawyers gonna defend.

but the racist arson shit is just gross, and it doesn't mitigate the fact that the building didn't meet the cheapest, most basic fire safety code. Like, the issue isn't whether the fire, itself, was a result of the defendants' negligence, but that fact that there was no way to put out the fire and/or get people out of the building safely -- that is why they are on trial. I feel like the issue of guilt vs. innocence hinges on the issue of "should the defendants have known better" -- in terms of operating live/work housing and an event venue in the building the way they built it out.

Like if this were a case of a drunk driver hitting and killing a bus full of people -- the argument would be pretty clear: dude was drunk, dude knows he shouldn't drive drunk, because that is a law that is drilled into everyone. Here, the issue is -- are the requirements for permits, inspections, what work requires permits, what work requires being done or signed off by a licensed contractor, what business operations are legal --are these things laws that the defendants should have known about and actively disregarded.

This trial, the way the DA has prosecuted it, really is starting to make me buy into various conspiracy theories, that they are avoiding and evading bringing the City of Oakland's ways of doing things (and uh, not doing things) into question, in order to reduce the risk of things coming to light that would hurt the City in the civil suit. ... and other lawsuits against the City regarding malfeasance by building department employees.

fucking hell could they possibly drag this out any longer
https://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Jury-to-restart-deliberations-in-Oakland-14361935.php

Oh my god.

Almena and Harris were set to be sentenced to nine and six years in prison, respectively, after pleading no contest to manslaughter last year. But a judge threw out their pleas after many of the victims' families objected, saying their proposed sentences were too lenient.

I have difficulty understanding why nine and six years wouldn't have been enough. I understand that 36 people is a lot of people to die tragically, but these guys are never going to manage another property like this again. It's unreasonable to believe anyone else is ever going to be hurt again as a result of similar future decision-making on their part. Nobody in their right mind thinks they did it intentionally. So what good does it do someone, anyone, to put them in prison for up to 39 years? Prison should be for rehabilitating violent criminals who are a threat to society, not for punishing people who avoid pulling permits.

I understand that 36 people is a lot of people to die tragically, but these guys are never going to manage another property like this again.

we don't know that ... it isn't like they have to wear ankle bracelets that go off within 300 feet of a warehouse. I hate the prison system more than these dudes though.

I would imagine the recidivism rate for convicted involuntary manslaughterers who have an unyielding desire to illegally rent out death trap warehouses to artists because it's the only way they can support themselves and/or get that adrenaline rush they need (?), is probably pretty low. If the state can prevent certain felons from working as mall santas, I don't see why it can't do the same for anyone who wants to own/manage units for rent, residential or otherwise.

I don't see why it can't do the same for anyone who wants to own/manage units for rent, residential or otherwise.

the state also has procedures in place to prevent people living and assembling in "death trap warehouses" ... however, I don't think they belong in prison ... just, idk, a psychological prison in their own heads or something. maybe I go back and re-read Discipline and Punish ...

Yes, and the defendants intentionally circumvented those measures, which is why they pleaded guilty to manslaughter and were set to be sentenced to nine and six years of prison. I'm not saying the prison system isn't an embarrassment, but I'm also not saying there shouldn't be some prison time as a punitive measure for this sort of manslaughter. What I'm perplexed about is the judge's decision to yield to the claims from the victims' families that nine and six years of prison time isn't enough. I guess it's not specific to this case necessarily, I just don't understand how sentencing can be so arbitrary.

it's complicated, because there are so many victims, and thus so many family members, so I don't think there's even consensus about sentencing as far as "the victims' families" are concerned.

Aug. 21, 4 p.m.

The reconstituted jury deliberated for their second full day without reaching a verdict. They won't return until Tuesday, Sept. 3 to resume their talks.

Heads up

https://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Verdicts-reached-in-California-warehouse-fire-14416842.php

Heh ... and I am actually going to be in San Francisco this evening.... the news helicopters haven’t arrived yet fyi

Defense attorney Curtis Briggs says jury has acquitted Max Harris and was unable to reach a verdict for Derick Almena, per @jersiegel at the courthouse.

— Sam Lefebvre (@Lefebvre_Sam) September 5, 2019

So question is, do they retry?

can't say I'm surprised, lengthy deliberations don't usually result in guilty verdicts

I'm not surprised either.

Jury was “hopelessly deadlocked” 10-2 with 10 voting for guilt

— Don Clyde (@ClydeDon) September 5, 2019

shoulda gone with that initial plea deal. high profile jury trials are never a sure thing.

Harris struck me as mentally challenged in some of the things I read so I'm not extremely surprised by that. Not that surprised by the hung jury on Almena either though I believe he should have been held accountable in some manner. But I also believe the building owners should be held accountable as well.

so yes they should retry Almena. dunno if they will.

they won't. they fucked this up good.

Gotta say I’ve attended and/or thrown enough parties in sketchy spaces that I have a fair amount of empathy for the defendants in this case.

Did your organize shit parties in places that were complete firetraps though? sketchy is one thing; tinderbox is another.

i have no idea why that says 'shit parties' though perhaps that is an apt question. that's what I get for posting when I haven't slept in 36 hours.

Almena will be retried.

https://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Retrial-for-man-in-California-warehouse-fire-that-14492604.php

Also in the news: the NY Times says our ball park is the ugliest in MLB

but charming

ive been there 3-4x, id say you got off easy