Death Toll Rises to 97
At Least 96 Dead in Inferno
Rescuers Struggle with Horror
Fire, Smoke Turns Club Into Hell
Discuss the Warwick Tragedy
The Aftermath Butterfly Garden to Be Dedicated
State Turns Over Evidence
State Turns Over Evidence
FBI Agent to Review Corruption
Group To Fundraise For Memorial
Two Dozen Defendants Added
R.I. To Release More Tapes
Judge: 911 Calls 'Secret'
Lawsuit From Nightclub Fire Filed
Consultants Fault Lack Of Planning
Judge: Evidence Will Be Preserved
Gag Order Sought in Club Fire
Changes to Safety Laws Since Fire
Few Changes After Club Blaze
Web Site Comforts RI Patients
RI Gov. Orders Strict Inspections
2 Families Sue in RI Club Blaze
RI Nightclub Claims May Total $1B
RI Nightclub Death Toll Rises to 98
Victims Face Long Recovery
All But 4 Victims ID'd
Thousands Mourn Victims
IDs Could Take Days
Family, Friends Search
9/11 Widow Reflects
Survivors Recall Heroic Acts
The Investigation Patron Capacity Unclear in RI Fire
Band Member Testifies
RI Reports Don't Mention Foam
Fire Inspector Report Released
Post-9/11 Drills Aid Club Rescue
Federal Team Launches Probe
Grand Jury Begins Probe
Brannigan: Inspectors Ready?
Investigation Ramps Up
Investigators Check Soundproof
Pyrotechnics Examined in Clubs
Disasters Prompt Inspections
Sprinklers Not Required
Nightclub Up to Code Before Fire
Town Withholds Records
RI Begins Inspections
No Warning of Pyro Use
Pyrotechnics Usually Safe
Atty: RI Club Rep. OK'd Pyrotech.
Fire Challenges State Atty. Gen.
IDs Weighed Heavy on Dentists
FEMA Denies Disaster Aid for Fire
Photos & Video IBS Scene SlideShow
ABC: The Fire Starts
WJAR Video Feedroom
History of Tragedies Carter: History Strikes Again
Fire, Life Safety Laws in Front
Tragedy Recalls Cocoanut Grove
Worst Club Tragedies
Nightclub Disasters Too Familiar
List: Worst Club Tragedies
Related Sites West Warwick Fire Department
Warwick Fire Department
FH Network: Rhode Island
Providence Journal Coverage
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- Station nightclub owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian must respond to lawsuits filed against them, and cannot delay the suits until the criminal case against them is settled, a federal judge has ruled.
U.S. District Judge Ronald Lagueux ruled on Monday, however, that the Derderians cannot be deposed and do not have to answer more detailed questions from victims' lawyers at this point.
The brothers and Daniel Biechele, the former manager for the rock band Great White, each face 200 counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the Feb. 20, 2003, fire at the West Warwick nightclub.
The fire started when pyrotechnics set off by Biechele ignited highly flammable foam that the Derderians had installed as soundproofing at the nightclub. One hundred people were killed and more than 200 injured. All three defendants have pleaded innocent to the criminal charges.
In court Monday, the Derderians' civil lawyer, Anthony DeMarco, argued that forcing the Derderians to respond to the civil suits at this point would jeopardize their right to a fair trial in the criminal case.
Many of the survivors and the victims' families have filed civil suits seeking damages for their losses.
DeMarco argued that the allegations against the brothers in those lawsuits - that they contributed to overcrowding at their nightclub, installed defective, flammable material in the club, violated state law regarding pyrotechnics, and failed to provide proper exits and lighting at the club - are the same allegations that their criminal case is based on.
If the Derderians were required to answer the lawsuits at this point, he says in court papers, they would have to assert their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, and this could hurt their defense in the lawsuits.
But Steven Minicucci, one of the lawyers representing the fire victims, said those filing suits could be irreparably harmed if the civil case against the Derderians was put on hold until after the criminal case was over.
Even if a jury were to determine that the Derderians were liable for monetary damages in the civil cases, they do not have sufficient money to compensate all the victims, so the plaintiffs need to seek out every possible defendant, Minicucci said.
As owners of the nightclub for the three years preceding the fire, the Derderians are in a position to give the civil lawyers information that could lead them to parties with bigger pockets that could be sued for damages, he said.
Minicucci also said that the civil lawyers need to learn from the Derderians the extent of their interactions with West Warwick town officials and the promoters of the Great White concert at The Station. The civil lawyers also want the Derderians to provide them with a list of prior employees who might have evidence about construction materials at the club.
If they have to wait until after the criminal trial to get information from the brothers, the civil statute of limitations might pass, which would make it impossible for them to add additional defendants to the civil suits, Minicucci said.
Lagueux said he thought it was unreasonable for the Derderians to delay answering the civil suits until their criminal case was over. He ordered them to respond, acknowledging that they might very well take the Fifth Amendment and refuse to answer some of the allegations against them.
But the judge said that at this point, he was not going to allow the civil lawyers to depose the brothers or to force them to answer questions in the form of interrogatories posed by the lawyers as part of the pretrial discovery process.
