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September 5, 2007

Lawyer: Ex-Station owner may have lied about foam

PROVIDENCE -- A lawyer for many of the victims of The Station nightclub fire alleged in court today that Howard Julian, former owner of the club, may have committed perjury in testimony he gave to the grand jury that investigated the blaze and also in sworn testimony given to victims’ lawyers who are trying to recoup money damages.

In a hearing this morning in U.S. District Court, Providence lawyer John Barylick told Magistrate Judge David L. Martin that he had recently obtained information from a former Station employee which leads him to believe that Julian gave “possibly perjurious testimony before the grand jury and in depositions.”

Julian, who is defending himself in the civil suits filed by the victims’ lawyers, was present in the courtroom as Barylick made this allegation, but in addressing the court at the end of the hearing, he did not respond. He declined to comment after the hearing.

Barylick said that he believes Julian may have lied to the grand jury and to the victims’ lawyers based on contradictory sworn statements he recently obtained from a former employee at The Station.

Julian, Barylick told the court, has testified on several occasions that he bought the soundproofing foam he installed on the walls of the drummer’s alcove of his nightclub either from a catalogue or from a local vendor of insulation products but that he “can’t remember who or where this seller was.”

But Barylick told Martin that someone who worked for Julian -- and who was present when his boss installed the foam -- says in an affidavit that Julian told him he’d found the white polyethylene foam – which is white and sold in blocks -- in a dumpster and had obtained it for free.

Barylick said that Julian has testified numerous times that after he bought the polyethylene foam -- a packing foam which is highly flammable when it burns and emits toxic fumes -- he screwed it onto the walls of The Station to act as soundproofing, and that the installation occurred in June 1996, a few months after he bought the club.

Julian later sold the club to Michael and Jeffrey Derderian in the spring of 2000, and they installed polyurethane foam on top of the foam that Julian put up, the victims’ lawyers say.

-- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton

Barylick made the allegations about Julian during a hearing regarding the victims’ attempts to obtain information from Sealed Air, one of the defendants in the civil lawsuits. The lawsuits allege that Sealed Air manufactured and/or distributed the polyethylene foam that Julian installed at The Station. Barylick argued in court that the company should have put warnings on its product before allowing it to be used by the public.

Last September, the Derderian brothers pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter charges related to the 100 deaths from the fire at their nightclub, a blaze which also injured more than 200 others.

Their pleas were based on the fact that the polyurethane foam they installed in their nightclub was highly flammable and did not meet state fire code standards. The foam quickly caught fire when Daniel Biechele, the tour manager for the rock band Great White set off pyrotechnics on the stage the night of Feb. 20, 2003. Biechele pleaded guilty to the same charges as the Derderians, for setting off the fireworks without a permit. Julian has never been charged.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:23 PM | Permalink

Comments

REST IN PEACE TRACY KING

jfcjr | September 13, 2007 9:21 AM link

This whole case of The Station fire has left more than scares and grief for everyone involved. The lies and the deception not to mention that the Grand Jury was steered away from the fire marshal. After all the evidence was gathered and the time went by for the trials to begin and surprise!!!! there wasn't any. Daniel Bichele is guilty of one thing and that was: he didn't get a permit to use the pyrotechnics. The foam is the main evidence that the brothers are guilty of. Yes they should have ask if this was fireproof, the fire marshal should have ask for documents of where it was bought, the lot number, and the label that showed that it was fireproof material. If the brother could not produce this information the the fire marshal should have closed the buisness UNTIL he knew what he was dealing with and made them remove it. Those people were like lambs being lead to slaughter. There is no justice for any of them or the children. What a shame.

Kim | October 23, 2007 11:42 AM link

September 5, 2007

Lawyer: Ex-Station owner may have lied about foam

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