The tour manager of the rock group Great White has pleaded guilty to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter for his role in a pyrotechnics display that sparked a deadly fire at The Station nightclub in February 2003.
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Download NowState prosecutors accused Daniel M. Biechele of lighting the pyrotechnics that started the blaze. One hundred concertgoers died, and more than 200 were injured in the West Warwick, RI, fire, the fourth-deadliest blaze in U.S. history.
Biechele faces up to 10 years in prison, according to Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch.
In December 2003, a state grand jury indicted Biechele and club owners Michael and Jeffrey Derderian each on 100 counts of misdemeanor manslaughter and 100 counts of criminal negligence.
Lynch says he expects to call Biechele as a witness in any trial involving The Station's owners, Michael Derderian and Jeffrey Derderian. The cases are in the pre-trial phase.
In August 2003, OSHA fined Great White and Michael and Jeffrey Derderian for safety violations. Rhode Island's Department of Labor and Training also fined the nightclub's owners for failing to have workers' compensation insurance.