CRANSTON, R.I.-
They are the vilified public faces of a tragic fire that killed 100 people at their Rhode Island nightclub more than three years ago. On Friday, the owners of the nightclub, Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, plan to plead no contest to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the Feb. 20, 2003, blaze.
Many victims’ relatives blame the Derderians for the fire, which ignited when the band Great White’s pyrotechnics hit flammable foam the brothers had installed as soundproofing at their The Station nightclub in West Warwick. The Derderians claimed they were never warned the foam was dangerous or illegal.
Those who know the brothers say they have done their best to resume low-key lives with their families even while carrying an enormous emotional burden and residing in a tiny state where so many were personally touched by the disaster.
“These guys have lived here for three and a half years and taken all of the abuse,” said Jody King, a longtime friend of the Derderians whose brother, Tracy, was a club employee and died in the fire. “They haven’t walked away, they haven’t left.”
Their attorney, Kathleen Hagerty, said the brothers have been devastated by the fire but try to live their lives by participating in school events with their children and other ordinary activities.
“There is a large amount of people that do recognize that this was really nothing more than a horrific and tragic accident,” Hagerty said.
Jeff Derderian, 39, was a prominent television reporter at the time of the fire, but has since left journalism. He now works in business development at Lang Naturals, a Middletown company that manufactures and develops food products.
Michael Derderian, 45, has been involved in business ventures including insurance, real estate and financial advising.
King said both brothers have grown increasingly quiet since the fire. He graduated from high school with Michael Derderian and said he used to be a jokester. But the mood was starkly different when he went out to eat with the Derderians within the past week.
“Everything was very serious and very somber,” King said.
The Derderian brothers and Great White tour manager Daniel Biechele were indicted on involuntary manslaughter charges.
In May, Biechele was sentenced to four years in prison for igniting the pyrotechnics without the required permit. He pleaded guilty in February to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
The brothers will plead no contest to a theory of involuntary manslaughter accusing them of committing a misdemeanor–installing flammable foam that violated the fire code–that led to the deaths. The foam was used to answer neighbors’ complaints about loud music at the club.
A judge plans to sentence Michael Derderian to four years in prison and give his younger brother a suspended sentence with probation and community service.
King said he plans to sit behind the Derderians in court on Friday.
“If someone could sit behind them and support them, I will do that.”
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