derrick almena and max harris each face 36 koupbs of involuntary manslaughter for the deadly 2016 fire. late last week the judge ruled oakland mayor libby schaaf will not have to take the stand in the case. >>> a permanent gun on gun shows at the cow palace. the plan was previously approved. because the daly city property is officially owned by the state, the vote will be reconsidered or is actually considered now null and void. voters today involved in the cow palace board of directors would have to approve transferring power to a locally controlled joint authority. that may then put the gun and ammunition sales ban into effect. there is a state measure now working its way through legislature. >> new video shows a new jersey utility worker narrowly escaping as falling wires erupt into a fireball setting the ground ablaze. a severe storm caused the wires to fall. the worker said he was okay and didn't need medical treatment. another storm system sent a roof blowing off a pennsylvania business. surveillance video capturing that whole thing there. just as the winds started to rip out a t

derrick almena and harris, they're facing 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter. they can be in prison for three decades and they have been in jail for almost two years and they were charged six months after a music event on 2016. the converted warehouse housed illegal artist. almena has been called the master tenant with harris described as his second in command. the jurors contest of nine women and three men. the judge, thomas scheduled breaks and the first one in late august. opening statements will start today, but they will most likely continue tomorrow. we'll hear testimony starting on may 6th. in oakland, jackie ward, kpix5. >>> i'm anne mackovec at the live news desk and we're watching the beginning of a coo. opposition leader guaido called for it in his social media video. members of the military, about 100 joined him in the streets of camacho racas and this is a head to head against opposition supporters and those supporting the current socialist president. nicholas maduro who is basically blowing this off. we heard from u.s. secretary of state mike pomp

and tony serra, he represents derrick almena, one of the accused men. he calls this a rainbow jury because it's so diverse. nine women, three men. ranges in ages from 20s into their 60s. a mix of blue and white collar workers. serra thinks that diversity will benefit his client. he expects the trial to last two to three months and does expect almena to take the stand sometime in june. almena and max harris both face 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the fire that burned through the so-called ghost ship warehouse fire in oakland two and a half years ago. it trapped and killed a number of people who had been there for a dance party that night. prosecutors have said almena rented the warehouse and illegally converted it into an entertainment venue and living work space for artists. the defense lawyers argue the landlord and city of oakland are to blame for failing to especially sure the building met safety codes. last year both did plead to no contest n. exchange, almena would have served nine years, hairs list six. but the victims families said pr

those are the charges that derrick almena and max harris face for their alleged role in this fire, the so-called ghost ship warehouse that burned here in oakland 2 1/2 years ago, trapping and killing a number of people who had been there for a dance party. this morning the prosecution said the victims had no notice, no time, no exit. he accused almena, who was a tenant, of violating his lease and illegally converting the warehouse into an unsafe residential art space. the jury saw pictures of the ghost ship before the fire, packed with tens of pianos, pieces of furniture and a number of items. the prosecution painted almena as unwilling to spenld the money to add an extra set of stairs, a fire door or improvements to the electrical system. and that almena laughed at the suggestion that the ghost ship warehouse was a death trap. he also presented evidence that max harris managed the space and collected rent. now, the defense lawyers have been arguing that the landlord and the city of oakland are to blame for failing to ensure this building met safety codes. now, last year almena and har

the two men we're talking about, derrick almena and max harris, are in that courtroom with both of their attorneys. i'll go over a timeline of how we got here. the ghost ship warehouse fire taking place in december of 2016. 36 people dying inside that warehouse fire. one of the deadliest fires we've had in recent memory. then it was in june of 2017 that derick almennate warehouse tenant and max harris the creative director were arrested and charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter. last year a plea deal or plea agreement was reached for the two men giving almena a nine-year prison sentence and harris a six-year term. but in a surprising move a judge in august of 2018 rejecting the deal saying almena didn't accept full responsibility or remorse for the deadly fire. and then two weeks ago the lawyers for the two men tried to get the case dismissed again claiming potentially exonerating evidence was destroyed lost or altered under the watch of prosecutors. the judge again denied that motion. we did get a chance to speak with nbc bay area legal expert steven clark about this trial

derrick almena and max harris face 36 counts in the 2016 oakland fire. one count for each person who died. both are pleading not guilty. >> 6:06. new for you this morning, it looks like teachers in fremont will like live not go on strike. the district and the teachers union just reached a new three-year tentative agreement. calls for guarantee salary increases for the current and next school years. in the third year, the two sides will negotiate salary terms. both say details will be announced later. the tentative agreement must be approved by union members and the school board before it takes effect. teachers, parents, and students held rallies and walk-ins to protest stalled contract talks. >>> a potential crackdown to protect your packages. san hoe saeuf city council supporting a proposed state law aimed at increasing penalties for thieves. if approved, the bill would give police officers discretion to book a suspect on either a misdemeanor or felony charge. criminals could face up to three years in prison. the bill is being proposed by santa clara co

derrick almena and max harris face 36 counts for involuntary manslaughter. opening statements are scheduled for next month. >>> no concrete timetable on when grounded boeing 737 max jets will return to the skies. boeing is now getting at least a preliminary green light from federal aviation leaders. the faa panel has released an initial review of the software. updates to pogue's mcas automated flight system. the update is called operationally suitable. but the report also recommends additional training for pilots. again, the grounding has ended. but the max 8 flights would be canceled through at least mid-august. >>> 6:23 for you right now. nbc bay area responds to a palo alto couple's long haul with with a canceled flight. >> consumer investigator chris chmura is here with how they got the gears churning towards a refund. >> kerry falla and his wife were ticketed to go from los angeles to india. >> i called customer service. and after an hour and a half, they were able to book me out of los angeles. >> okay. los angeles. so that means flying from l.a. all t

derrick almena and max harris are charged with 51 counts, one for each death in the fires. th living there. >> one of the main themes of our defense is no one red tagged him. no one came in and inspected and told them that it was a fire hazard. >> defense attorneys say the men are not criminally responsible and that the city of oakland and the building's owner share the blame. the trial could take several mnths. >> measles cases in the u.s. have reached a new high. there are now more than 100 cases an outbreaks in 22 states, and the bay area cases have been report in san francisco, san mateo and santa clara county. today health officials in contra costa county encouraged adults who are not sure if they had a second round of the vaccine to get one. >> members of the vaccine are very safe and effective and very important. if you're not sure you can always get an extra dose, no harm in getting an extra doze. >> doctors say children should be vaccinated at age one and age 5. people can spread measles to others even before they have any symptoms. >> from serving our country to p

now, it was on june of 2017 that derrick almena, the warehouse tenant, and max harris, the creative director of the ghost ship warehouse, they were both arrested and charged with 36 were counts of involuntary man absoluter. last year a plea deal was reached giving al men that a nine-year prison sentence and harris a six-year sentence. in a surprising move last year, another judge rejected that plea deal saying almena didn't accept full responsibility or remorse for the deadly fire. lawyers tried to get the case dismissed altogether claiming potentially exonerating evidence was destroyed, lost, or altered under the watch of prosecutors in the case. the judge in this denied that motion. new "today in the bay" spoke with bay area legal expert steven classic clark about the upcoming trial taking place this morning. specifically the case that could be made by the defense team. >> translator: key to this case for the defense is going to be jury selection. everyone in alameda county has heard of the "ghost ship" fire. and almost everyone knows the two pled guilty in search of a plea deal, and that

derrick almena and max harris each face 36 counts of manslaught manslaughter. opening statements are scheduled to start next month. late last week a judge ordered mary schaaf will not have to take the stand in the case. >>> san mateo county supervisors previously approved a ban but because the daly city property is opened by the state it was considered null and void. today's vote involves the cal palace board of directors. they would have to go to a locally joint authority. that may put the gun and ammunition sales ban into effect. there is a state measure working its waylegislature. >>> an i.t. worker won a huge lawsuit. he is manager at genentech. he accused the employee of stealing half a sandwich and falsifying time cards. the employee said it was retaliation for a race based complaint. the jury siding with the employee. the company says they appreciate the thoughtful deliberations. >> this snow is forcing yosemite to close its five high sierra camps. the park said there's not enough time to fix the bridge, wastewater facilities, and damaged tents. all of t

derrick almena and max harris face one count for each person who died in the fire.last between 12 and 18 weeks. prosecutors have given the defense more than 12,000 pages of documents and hundreds of hours of video and audio recordings. jury selection is supposed to begin today. hundreds of potential jurors may be called. >>> right now let's get a look at the weather before you head out the door. . >>> we still have the unsettled weather. we have been tracking showers all morning long. we just had a good round move through san jose. 55 degrees right now. it will be cloudy throughout the day. on and off rain expected to carry over all day long into wednesday with spotty chance wednesday as well. we're going to be in the 60s. doppler radar right now shows you have heavy pockets of rain up in the sierra with wintry mix of rain and snow. we will continue to keep the rain all afternoon. and it could get organized by 3:00 overall the next seven days. here's a look at what you can expect. spotty rain, heavier on the rain for friday. >>> drizzle, light rain. northbound 87, t

defendants derrick almena and max harris face 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the deadly fireill start next month. >>> new details documents showing prosecutors in chicago were concerned bay area actor "empire" star jussie smollett was being overcharged. this comes ahead of all the charges being dropped. nbc received internal texts and emails related to the smollett investigation. state attorney kim foxx believes he was overcharged, especially compared to the case of r&b singer r. kelly. smollett told police he was the victim of a hate crime. police later determined that he was not a victim and instead he had staged the attack. >>> still no concrete timetable when grounded boeing 737 max jets will return to the skies. boeing is getting the preliminary light from aviation leaders. faa panel released its initial review to mcas automated flight system. it is being called operationally suitable. they recommend additional training for pilots. again, the grounding at this point is open-ended. american airlines yesterday said its max 8 flights would be canceled at least through mid-a

the men on trial this morning, derrick almena and max harris.hey're facing 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter and if found guilty, they could be in prison for three decades. 6 month later, harris and almena were charged. on july 13th of 2018, almena and harris plead no contest. their plea deals were rejected which led us to the start of the trial today. almena was the master tenant with harris' so-called second and command. we spoke to those who support harris and tired of this -- >> i'm ready to get this over with and see people heal. >> nine women and three men were sworn in yesterday and the trial expected to last several months and superior court judge scheduled breaks -- opening statements begin today and continue tomorrow and judge thompson hopes testimony begins may 6th. jackie ward. >>> this morning, people living in the santa cruz homeless camp will soon be on the move. last night a federal judge ruled to allow the city to dismantle the massive encampment and the decision comes after two days of hearing. it overturns a temporary rest

tony serra is the lawyer who represents derrick almena. he calls it a rainbow jury because it is so diverse. nine women, three men ranging in ages from their 20s, into their 60s. a mix of blue and white collar workers. serra thinks that will benefit his client. he expects the trial to last two to three months. he expects almena to take the stand in june. they each face 30 koupbs of involuntary manslaughter. the fire trapped and killed a number of people there for a dance party. prosecutors said almena rented the warehouse and illegally turned it into a living space for artists and entertainment venue. the defense lawyers argue that the landlord and city of oakland officials are to blame for failing to ensure the building met safety codes. last year both men agreed to plea no contest. they would have served nine years for almena, harris six. both men now face a max numb sentence of life in prison if convicted on all 36 counts. again, all 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter. reporting live, bob redell, "today in the bay". >> a lot of peopl

the defendants derrick almena and max harris each face 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter. their attorneys wanted the mayor to testify because she knew about a civil grand jury report about problems with oakland's fire inspection process. schaaf's attorneys pointed out the mayor had no direct knowledge of the warehouse before the fire. opening statements are scheduled to begin next month >>> 6:34 right now. this is a first. e-cigarette maker juul taking new steps to keep products out of the hands of minor. they are trying to police itself. live with the steps that you can take to keep your kids safe. roz? >> reporter: this is a new tool designed for parents, teachers and police officers who might catch minors with the company's vaping devices. juul is one of the largest of the e-cigarette makers and most well-known. there has been kopcontroversy around i cigarettes and vaping. it has been called an epidemic. there has been a ban on flavored tobacco. the company is launching this new tech tool to find out how minors are getting these products. it's called track and trace. he

derrick almena and -- this is from the 2016 oakland fire. they're facing one count for each person who died. both are pleading not guilty. >>> 580 in the east bay opened this morning after a major disruption. police say the squealing tires were part of a sideshow that took over 580 in oakland last night. cars were spinning out in the westbound lanes near 106th. it set everyone back for about 20 minutes. even got more out of hand when someone started a small fire and people in the sideshow threw bottles at patrol cars. no one was hurt, luckily. so far, no arrests announced. >>> students at uc berkeley are not staying quiet about living conditions. according to the chronicle, people living at the all female stern hall are sick of living with mice, ants and other vermin. the current cost of living is about $17,000 a year. some students say it's unfair that they have to shell out the same rate as peers who live in new or renovated dorms given the problems. they're working to fix the problem and offering alternate housing to those students. >>> a

derrick almena and max harris are charged with 35 counts each of involuntary manslaughter for the deaths at the warehouse on december 2nd, 2016. tomorrow, judge trina thompson will hear two final motions before beginning jury selection. the trial is expected to include at least 12 to 18 weeks of evidence from both the prosecution and the defense. it's a very complex and involved case. >> it is. >>> in sausalito, progress today where a mudslide took out homes and raised havoc on valentine's day. >> the street directly beneath that slide has reopened. but wayne freedman explains some residents are still, wayne, in limbo. >> good afternoon, dan. no one died of that mudslide. the survivors feel very lucky, and yet residents of the only surviving, only remaining red tagged building are frustrated. they think this recovery should have been moving a little bit faster. it's a nice view, but brian wilson, formally of sausalito still misses his former home. you think about it much? >> oh, yeah, all the time. every day. >> reporter: when the valentine's day mudslide took out his home it essentially

derrick almena and max harris are charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count for eache people who died in the fire. the defense says the case should be thrown out saying critical evidence was mishandled or destroyed but the judge threw out that movement last month. >>> police will give an update on the death of nipsey hussle. this comes just a few hours after a stampede happened at a vigil for him. one person may have been hit by a car and at least two other people were seriously hurt. nipsey hussle with us a 33-year-old grammy nominee who was shot and killed outside of his clothing store in l.a. >> we saw two girls come down by the cars just scared. they said people got trampled ov. they don't know what happened. >> police said this morning that the suspect in the shooting is 29-year-old eric holder of los angeles. he was last seen driving away in a white 2016 chevy cruise. two other men standing next to hussle were also shot but both survived. >>> senate democrats blocked a senate disaster aid relief bill because they say it does not do enough for puerto rico recover

derrick almena faces charges for the deadly fire in 2016 and the lawyer for harris said libby schaaf is a crucial witness with relevant knowledge of, quote, deficiencies of the police, fire and building departments. so far, more than 300 potential jurors have filled out questionnaires and jury selection will begin next tuesday. >>> it's 7:04 and the man accused of being the golden state killer could get the death penalty if convicted. joseph deangelo appeared in the sacramento courtroom yesterday about one year since he was arrested with prosecutors from four counties saying they would each seek the death penalty against him. he is charged with 13 murders and is believed to have committed dozens of and burglaries back in the 1970s and 1980s. >> we are thrilled with the decision to seek the death penalty. the golden state killer is the worst of the worst of the worst that ever happened. >> the judge ruled that news cameras will be allowed in the courtroom and deangelo is due back in court in august. governor newsom said he will suspend all executions while governor, which probably won

derrick al men narcotics the warehouse tenant and the creative director max harris charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter when it comes to the ghost ship warehouse fire. authorities claiming almena rented it illegally. and harris hdg almena ane-year sentence and another judge rejected that almt full responsibility or remorse for the deadly fire. two weeks ago, lawyers tried to get the case dismissed again arguing charges should be dismissed claiming exonerating evidence were lost under the watch of prosecutors. the judge denied the motion in that as well. the trial is expected to be lengthy. it could be 12 to 18 weeks. pete suratos for "today in the bay". >> thank you, pete. a berkeley engineer due in court. he is charged with a plot to.a co-workers. >> he docto chemical. >> these cou34-year-old david chu. before now he was known as a respected engineer at berkeley engineering and research incorporated. he is behind bars facing attempted murder charges, accused of poisoning a co-worker by putting a toxic metal in her food and water on a number of occasions for over a year. his lafayette neighbors say they just can't belive it. >> it's unbelievable. so, yeah, like, it's lafayette