The Incident
First-In: Heroic Rescues
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
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
Charles Sweet says he feels paralyzed because he's been so fixated on those he believes are responsible for a nightclub fire in February that killed his 28-year-old son and 99 others.
He's anxious to learn what a statewide grand jury investigating the fire has found, and some victims' families and survivors hoped Attorney General Patrick Lynch would announce charges at a meeting set for Tuesday afternoon.
``Who suffers now? I tell you who _ the parents,'' said Sweet, 68, of Pembroke, Mass.
Legal experts said the scheduling of a meeting with survivors and relatives could indicate there has been a decision on criminal charges.
David Yas, an attorney and editor of Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly, said he believes it means the grand jury probe is concluded because prosecutors are prohibited from discussing the status of an active criminal investigation.
``I can't imagine our attorney general is calling together all of these victims just to give them a status report,'' said another attorney, Michael St. Pierre, who represents some survivors and relatives. Lynch's spokesman, Michael Healey, wouldn't comment on whether indictments were imminent, saying only that Lynch planned to ``tell people what he legally and ethically can.'' The Feb. 20 fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick started when a band's pyrotechnics ignited highly flammable foam that had been placed around the club's stage as soundproofing. Many of the dead and the 200 injured were trapped in the smoke and flames when patrons rushed for the exit.
Several lawsuits have been filed against the club owners, Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, and the band, Great White.
Doug Magness and his wife, Barbara, say they want charges, although they refused to blame anyone for the deaths of their son and daughter-in-law.
It doesn't matter anymore, Doug Magness said, that the Derderians were friends of the family. They know now about the cheap, flammable foam installed at the club. They know the Derderians didn't have workers' compensation insurance for their employees, including Magness' son, Steven Mancini, a part-time bouncer, and his wife Andrea, who took tickets.
``They were businessmen who gambled and they lost, and you have to face it when you lose,'' Magness said.
Jeff Pine, who represents Jeffrey Derderian, said he understands that some want to blame the brothers, though he doesn't think his client committed any crime.
``I don't take issue with anyone's personal feelings,'' Pine said. ``The Derderians lost friends in the fire as well. We certainly understand the magnitude of this tragedy.''
Doug Magness also is trying to get back his son's wedding band. Shortly after his son died in the fire, he learned the state medical examiner had it.
Officials wouldn't turn it over to Magness without proof of its owner, so he unearthed a wedding picture of 39-year-old Mancini. Magness enlarged the photo, certain it would clinch the ring bearer's identity.
That was before the summer, and still Magness has no ring.
``I don't understand why they're holding it,'' he said. ``I want it back.''
Others say they will be relieved to get a progress report of any kind at the meeting.
``We're glad to have this meeting; we're kind of looking forward to it,'' said Joseph Gruttadauria, whose daughter, 33-year-old Pamela, died in the hospital May 4, becoming the fire's 100th and last victim. ``Otherwise, we'll be in the dark.''
