3 Charged: Involuntary Manslaughter In Club Fire

[DudeAsInCool]

3 People Charged in Connection With Deadly Nightclub Fire

By PAM BELLUCK

ROVIDENCE, Rhode Island, Dec. 9 — The owners of a nightclub and the tour manager of a heavy-metal band were indicted today on charges of involuntary manslaughter in connection with a Feb. 20 blaze at the nightclub that killed 100 people and injured nearly 200.

The three men — the club's owners, Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, and the band's manager, Dan Biechele — were each charged with 200 charges of involuntary manslaughter, two for each death, and were arraigned today. The three men pleaded not guilty, news agencies reported.

The indictments are the first criminal charges to emerge from a nine-month investigation.

Officials say the fire started when the band, Great White, lighted several pyrotechnic cones on stage, sending up showers of sparks, apparently into foam sound-proofing material that lined the walls. The authorities said the fire spread almost instantly to paneling and a low-hanging suspended ceiling.

The Derderians, who own the Station, a club in the Providence suburb of West Warwick, had told investigators that the band had never asked for permission to use pyrotechnics and had never informed anyone they would be used.

But lawyers for Mr. Biechele and the band's singer have said the club's owners approved the use of fireworks.

The inferno was the deadliest nightclub fire in the United States in 25 years and one of the worst in the country's history, with the death toll exceeding that of the 1990 Happy Land social club fire in the Bronx, which killed 87.

The lawyers for the three defendants said their clients wanted to express their sympathy for the victims.

Thomas G. Briody, the lawyer for Mr. Biechele, said his client was not guilty of the charges. "He could not have known of the dangerous conditions that existed inside the Station, the limits on the crowd, the flammable and toxic foam on the walls," he said.

Jeffrey Pine, a lawyer representing Jeffrey Derderian, spoke on behalf of the brothers when he said: "They are not criminals. They did not commit a criminal act. They should not be charged with any crime."

Mr. Pine also said he was disappointed that Jack Russell, the leader of Great White, was not charged.

Attorney General Patrick Lynch was scheduled to meet with reporters this afternoon to comment on the indictments.

The fire spurred the state Legislature to adopt a new set of fire regulations, which Rhode Island officials have praised as the toughest in the nation.

The new rules ban the use of pyrotechnics in all but the largest of public facilities — those that can accommodate at least 1,000 people. Previously, clubs of much smaller capacity were permitted to ignite fireworks if they first obtained a permit. The Station, the nightspot where disaster struck on Feb. 20, did not have such a permit.

Kirk Semple contributed reporting from New York for this article.

NY Times.com

[Shawn]

You know this story bothered me at the time.

I saw Great White's lead vocalist on the news saying something to the effect that the incident had been 'upsetting'. Their f'ing drummer died in the fire, you would have thought he could do better than 'upsetting'. I think he figured the surviving band members were headed for jail.

Now, only their manager is up on charges.