GREAT WHITE - Settlement Details Offered In RI Club Fire Case
November 24, 2009, 14 years ago
Eric Tucker from the Associated Press is reporting:
Children under 18 who lost a parent in a deadly 2003 Rhode Island nightclub fire should receive a gross average of $202,000 as their shares of a $176 million settlement, according to a report submitted in federal court.
The report reviews death and personal injury claims from the dozens of children affected by the Feb. 20, 2003 fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, which killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others.
The report was prepared by William Poore, an outside lawyer hired to conduct the review. The report's recommendations must be approved by U.S. District Judge Ronald Lagueux.
Forty one children under 18, including a 6-year-old who was in utero at the time of the fire, are recommended to receive anywhere between $171,685.44 and $241,631.36 - or an average of 202,000 - before attorneys' fees and other costs are deducted.
Victims' children who were minors at the time of the fire but are now between 18 and 24 are recommended to receive an average gross amount of $155,700.
The child's age at the time of the fire is the main reason for the differing amounts, Poore said.
"The younger you are, the more money you get because the longer you have to go without a parent" during your childhood, Poore said.
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