OAKLAND, Calif. _ At least one Ghost Ship warehouse fire defendant is expected to testify in the involuntary manslaughter trial, while another attorney called the district attorney "corrupt" after a Wednesday hearing.
Curtis Briggs, one of the attorneys for defendant Max Harris, called out District Attorney Nancy O'Malley for being "fundamentally corrupt" outside the courtroom on Wednesday. Harris and co-defendant Derick Almena are each charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the deaths of 36 people in the warehouse fire in Oakland's Fruitvale section on Dec. 2, 2016.
Attorneys for both Harris and Almena have called for the arrest and charges against 14 other individuals related to the fire, including the Ng family, which owned the warehouse building, as well as fire and other city officials.
"I think any time you use your prosecutorial power to prosecute an underdog, someone who couldn't likely defend themself if attorneys hadn't stepped forward on a pro bono status, and you try to blame an entire tragedy on them when it was actually the city of Oakland's fault, when it was the owners' fault ... that's institutional corruption in its highest form," Briggs said.
He said that the Ng family hired a crisis manager who "is very effective at making charges go away." He would not elaborate how this person allegedly did that.
Tyler Smith, also an attorney for Harris, later said that Briggs was referring to Sam Singer, a well-known crisis manager who has a public relations/public affairs firm based in San Francisco.
Singer said he was hired by the attorneys to represent the family to assist in communication issues surrounding the tragedy.
"I'm honored that anyone would speak so highly of my work, but there's no truth in me making charges go away," Singer told the East Bay Times on Wednesday.
Briggs said his defense team is the only one who "cares enough" to try to get the Ng family to testify in the trial.
Tony Serra, an attorney for defendant Almena, also announced to reporters after the Wednesday hearing that his client will "100 percent" testify in the trial. Defendants in criminal cases have a right to not testify on their own behalf, if they should so choose.
Last month, defense attorneys for both defendants filed motions to compel a citizen's arrest for the 14 other people. Recently added to the list was Ben Cannon, a contractor hired by the Ng family to do electrical work on the warehouse building and neighboring buildings. The defense teams also filed what is called a "trombetta motion," alleging that the prosecution mishandled evidence in the case, with the ultimate goal of getting it dismissed.
In a response to the defense's motion to compel the arrests, prosecutors argue that the request to arrest these 14 people is unprecedented and should be denied. They state the defense is asking the court to "step into the shoes of law enforcement," overriding the power of the district attorney.
Prosecutor Autrey James writes in the motion that nowhere in the about 12,000 pages of discovery and hundreds of hours of audio and video recording is there evidence to charge the other 14 people.
"The facts of this case have been carefully considered and the question of admissible evidence thoroughly examined. The (District Attorney's) Office has concluded that criminal liability lies with defendant(s) Harris and Almena," James writes.
Alameda County Superior Court Judge Trina Thompson was officially assigned to the case on Wednesday, which is expected to begin April 2. She said the trial could last anywhere from a couple of weeks up to six months.
Thompson is the sixth judge associated with the Ghost Ship case; it had previously been assigned to retired Judge Vernon Nakahara. Now-retired Judge Jeffrey Horner presided over the preliminary hearing, while Judges Kevin Murphy and James Cramer have presided over such things as bail hearings, plea hearings and other proceedings. Judge Morris Jacobson was the one who helped broker the plea deal between defense attorneys and prosecutors in the summer, which fell through.
Motions from the defense will be heard Jan. 18 before Thompson.
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