36 people were killed when a fire tore through San Francisco’s Ghost Ship warehouse venue in December 2016. Investigators never determined the cause of the fire. They did, however, find that scattered debris around the building accelerated its spread, and that Almena was aware of persisting electrical problems within the venue but never addressed them.

Almena was originally sentenced to serve 12 years in prison after a plea deal was reached. He was pulled from prison and placed under house arrest when safety concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic led to prison depopulation measures.

The former master tenant has now been sentenced to serve another 18 months on house arrest, but it’s unlikely that he will return to prison thereafter. Time already served and credit awarded for good behavior have factored into Almena’s sentence, and after the 18 months on house arrest, he will be placed on supervised probation for an additional three years.

Grieving family members of the Ghost Ship tragedy’s victims remain unsatisfied with the verdict. “This lenient, slap-on-the-wrist sentence is vastly inappropriate for the crimes Derick Almena committed,” said the family of fire victim Sarah Hoda  in a statement. “Upholding the DA’s irresponsible plea recommendation would shortchange 36 victims and their families.”

“I know that no family member will find this in any way acceptable, and I accept that responsibility,” said Alameda County Superior Court Judge Trina Thompson. “I wish I could in the stroke of a pen take away your deep loss and your sadness.”

Few who lost a loved one to the tragedy are satisfied with the outcome. Mercury News reports that Almena, 50, entered into a plea deal that reduced his prison sentence to 12 years. Between time already served and credit awarded to him for good behavior, however, it’s possible that he will only have to remain on house arrest for another year and a half due to prison depopulation measures taken due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After that, he will be subject to supervised probation for three years.

Almena is set to be formally sentenced on March 8th, and family members of the Ghost Ship fire victims hope to convince the judge to impose a stricter penalty. “We can make our voices heard,” Colleen Dolan, the mother of Chelsea Faith Dolan. “All we can do is speak up and represent our children.”

Attorney Mary Alexander, who represents the majority of the victims, doesn’t expect their efforts to sway the decision. “Just the way things are posturing, I would doubt it would change anything,” she said.

Sinking Ship

In 2013, Derick Almena entered into the lease for the industrial space that he would later name Ghost Ship. He used it to host art galleries and dance parties in addition to illegally renting out space on the first floor to roughly 25 tenants.

Investigators never determined the exact cause of the blaze that tore through Ghost Ship on December 2nd, 2016, but they found that excessive debris scattered in and around the space accelerated its spread. All 36 victims died of smoke inhalation, according to a Alameda County Arson Task Force report. 2014 emails between Almena and the property’s landlord, Chor Ng, showed that Almena had been aware of the building’s electrical issues since that time at the latest.

After his 2017 arrest, Almena was released on house arrest in May 2020 on account of a medical condition rendering him susceptible to COVID-19. Violation of any terms of the plea deal could increase his prison sentence to 39 years.