GREAT WHITE - Relatives Of Club Fire Victims ....

GREAT WHITE - Relatives Of Club Fire Victims To Gather Sunday For Memorial

According to Boston.com, relatives of the 100 people killed by The Station nightclub fire will mark the fifth anniversary of the blaze with a memorial service this weekend.

The event Sunday afternoon will be held at the former site of the West Warwick club. Details for a permanent memorial planned for the site are expected to be released then.

The Feb. 20, 2003 fire began when pyrotechnics used by the 1980s rock band GREAT WHITE ignited flammable soundproofing foam on the walls and ceiling.

Besides the 100 people killed, more than 200 others were injured. Eight of those killed lived or worked in Connecticut.

Survivors and victims' relatives have marked each anniversary of the fire with a memorial service at the roadside site.

GREAT WHITE - Station Fire Victims May Get Settlements By Year’s End

The following report is courtesy of Tracy Breton from Projo.com:

Lawyers for the victims of The Station nightclub fire are hoping to distribute the large pool of settlement money that has been offered to their clients by the end of this year, according to letters some of the victims have received in recent weeks.

Although some of the parties that lawyers consider most culpable have yet to enter into settlements, attorneys for those killed and injured as a result of the fire are anticipating that the civil lawsuits pending in U.S. District Court can be wrapped up during the next several months, without a trial. They’ve told clients that their “goal” is to distribute the proceeds by the end of December.

There are still claims against the State of Rhode Island and the Town of West Warwick that would need to be resolved before the victims’ lawsuits can be terminated –– claims that, if settled, might require General Assembly and/or voter approval.

The state and the town were sued because no one delegated to inspect The Station ever cited its owners, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, for the highly flammable polyurethane foam they installed as soundproofing in their club. The West Warwick fire marshal, Denis P. Larocque, who recently retired with a disability pension from the town, said he never noticed the foam during his inspections.

The Derderians each pleaded no-contest to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the 2003 fire that killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others. They, too, remain as defendants in the civil lawsuits. But there isn’t much money to be had from the brothers. After the fire, they filed for bankruptcy protection and their debts have been discharged. Therefore, they would be immune from paying any judgment that could be rendered against them if the case went to trial. The only payments that the victims might be able to recoup from the Derderians in a settlement are the proceeds of a property insurance policy on the building, which would yield less than $1 million if the bankruptcy court approves its release.

To date, close to $155 million has been tentatively offered to settle the fire victims’ claims. This includes $1 million that the court is holding from the rock band GREAT WHITE –– whose pyrotechnics sparked the deadly fire –– and many millions offered by other parties, including corporations that allegedly made the foam that lined the walls as well as sponsors of the Great White show, among them, the beer manufacturer Anheuser-Busch.

Read more here.

GREAT WHITE - Rhode Island Nightclub Owners Reach Settlement In Fatal Fire

According to Eric Tucker from the Associated Press, the owners of a nightclub where a 2003 fire killed 100 people have reached a tentative $813,000 settlement with survivors and relatives of those killed, the latest in a flurry of agreements made in the last year to resolve lawsuits over the deadly blaze.

The settlement offer from Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, revealed in court papers Wednesday, will be covered by their insurance policy; the brothers have received bankruptcy protection that shielded them from lawsuits.

More than $175 million has now been offered by dozens of defendants to the more than 300 people suing over the Feb. 20, 2003, fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick. It began when pyrotechnics ignited cheap packaging foam the Derderians had installed as soundproofing.

Members of GREAT WHITE, the 1980s rock band whose tour manager shot off the pyrotechnics at the start of a concert, agreed to a separate $1 million settlement in court papers filed Tuesday. The band's insurer is covering the settlement.

"In terms of the case itself, really, the plaintiffs are closing the circle here," said Anthony DeMarco, a lawyer for the Derderians.
The settlement still requires the approval of the federal bankruptcy court, the judge overseeing the lawsuits and the hundreds of people who are suing.

The Derderians were accused in the lawsuits of operating an unsafe nightclub, where an exit door swung the wrong way, overcrowding was permitted and foam that experts said burned like gasoline lined the walls near the stage.

The brothers did not admit any wrongdoing under the settlement, but have apologized in court to victims and have said they had no idea the foam was flammable.

The Derderians in 2006 resolved criminal charges against them by pleading no contest to 100 counts each of 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter. Michael Derderian was sentenced to four years in prison and will be released on parole next year; Jeffrey Derderian was spared prison time and was given probation and community service.

The only other person criminally charged in the fire was Great White's tour manager, Daniel Biechele. He pleaded guilty in 2006 to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter and was paroled in March after serving less than half of his four-year prison sentence.

The Derderians sought bankruptcy protection in 2005, estimating their debts at more than $100 million. The bankruptcy filing allowed them to avoid what could have been a hugely expensive jury verdict if the case had gone to trial.

GREAT WHITE - More Delays For Station Fire Victims' Settlements


Projo.com is reporting:

Victims of The Station nightclub fire aren't going to get any of their settlement money in time for Christmas.

It appears, in fact, that it will be next spring at the earliest, that any funds will be distributed.

A federal magistrate judge, David L. Martin, met this afternoon with lawyers for the victims and the dozens of parties they sued in connection with the February 2003 fire. Representatives of both sides said they'd reached agreement on the next steps to be followed as they try to wrap up the litigation.

Providence lawyer William A. Poore will be appointed special master on behalf of the 181 minors who are slated to receive part of the $176 million that has been offered to settle the 11 federal lawsuits brought by those who lost loved ones or suffered injuries in the fire. During the next 45 days, Poore will confer with a Duke University law professor who has devised a matrix for distributing the $176 million. His job will be to review the matrix to see if it seems fair to the minors.Then Poore will submit a report to the court and the professor, Francis E. McGovern, will submit his grid for court approval.

At some point later in the proceedings, the victims' lawyers plan to ask the court to appoint Poore as guardian ad litem for the minors which will give him additional duties regarding the proposed distribution of funds.

Martin scheduled another status conference with all of the lawyers for Jan. 5 at 2 p.m.

Lawyers for the more than 300 plaintiffs who stand to receive settlement money had hoped to be able to distribute the funds by year's end. But there have been some unexpected delays: Senior U.S. District Court Judge Ronald R. Lagueux, who is presiding over the mass tort cases, has been out ill for several months, and some of the lawyers for the parties who have offered to settle are questioning whether more than one guardian ad litem should be appointed for the minors. They've expressed concern that some minors could try to re-open the lawsuits once they become adults to try to get additional compensation; they've told the court that they want protection against that happening.


Read more here.

GREAT WHITE - Proposal For Splitting Money In Nightclub Fire Case

The Associated Press is reporting:

A law school professor on Friday submitted a plan for distributing $176 million in settlement money among the more than 300 people who sued after a Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 100 people.

The proposal from Francis McGovern, a court-appointed special master and Duke University law professor, awards the most points to those survivors who were the most severely injured and had the highest medical bills.

His point system also awards compensation to people who lost relatives in the blaze, with points varying based on a victim's age, marital status, income and educational background. And it says any plaintiff who can provide proof of being at at The Station nightclub club when the fire broke out is eligible for a share of the settlement.

The Feb. 20, 2003, fire at the West Warwick club began when pyrotechnics used by the rock band GREAT WHITE ignited soundproofing foam around the stage. Besides the 100 killed, more than 200 others were injured.

Eight of the victims lived or worked in Connecticut.

The victims reached settlements over the last year and a half with dozens of defendants, including brewer Anheuser-Busch, foam manufacturers, the owners of the club and members of the band.

It is not clear from what the point system what any one person would receive since no money has been distributed yet and the plan doesn't provide dollar figures.

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