No contest pleas end Station fire trial

WEST WARWICK, R.I., Sept. 21 (UPI) -- The owners of The Station nightclub in West Warwick, R.I., where fire killed 100 people in 2003, agreed to no contest pleas to involuntary manslaughter charges.

In exchange, Superior Court Judge Francis J. Darrigan agreed not to sentence one of the owners to jail, the Providence (R.I.) Journal said Thursday.

The owners, brothers Jeffrey Derderian, 39, and Michael Derderian, 45, each were charged with 200 counts of involuntary manslaughter in the fire that began on stage when pyrotechnics lit flammable soundproofing foam during a performance by rock band Great White.

Michael Derderian is scheduled to serve four years in prison then three years of probation, the Journal said. Under the agreement, he will receive an 11-year suspended sentence, which could be re-imposed if he gets in trouble while on probation.

Jeffrey Derderian, 39, will receive a 10-year suspended sentence, serving three years' probation and performing 500 hours of community service, the newspaper said.

That sentence Michael Derderian received is identical to one imposed on Daniel M. Biechele, Great White's tour manager who set off fireworks that started the fire, the newspaper said. Biechele pleaded guilty in February.

In addition to the 100 people killed, more than 200 other were injured in the fire. The Derderians and Biechele were each charged with two counts for each death due to legalities, the Journal said.