Man convicted in blaze at club asks not to testify
PROVIDENCE -- The man whose pyrotechnics display triggered a deadly nightclub fire should not have to testify in civil lawsuits pending in the case, because he still could be charged elsewhere, his lawyer said yesterday.
Daniel Biechele, former tour manager for the band Great White, pleaded guilty last year to state charges of involuntary manslaughter for his role in the February 2003 fire, which killed 100 people. Sparks from Biechele's pyrotechnics ignited flammable foam on the walls of The Station nightclub in West Warwick, fueling a fire that swiftly engulfed the building and trapped concertgoers inside.
Lawyers who represent a few hundred victims' relatives and fire survivors want to question Biechele as part of their lawsuits against dozens of defendants, including the State of Rhode Island, the former town fire marshal, members of Great White, and various foam manufacturers.
Biechele, now serving a four-year prison sentence, is among those being sued, but the plaintiffs see his real value as being a critical source of information about events leading up to the fire. They hope his testimony can bolster their case against other, wealthier defendants.
"I would suggest now is the time for him to begin speaking, to tell us what happened, to fill in the blanks," Charles Redihan, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told a federal magistrate yesterday.
But Biechele's lawyer, Tom Briody, said that his client risks being prosecuted in federal court or in other states where the band performed and used pyrotechnics and that some information the plaintiffs' lawyers want could elicit potentially incriminating answers.
The plaintiffs accuse the band of transporting the pyrotechnics across the state line without required permits, which Briody said might interest federal authorities.
The statute of limitations for most federal felonies is five years, Briody said, though he cited one potentially relevant federal law, regarding the interstate transport of explosive devices, that he said has a 10-year statute of limitations.
A spokesman for the US attorney's office in Rhode Island declined to comment. 