PROVIDENCE -- Prompted by The Station fire, Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch yesterday unveiled a bill that would allow Rhode Island to press criminal charges when someone is seriously injured because of negligence.
Now, the state can only prosecute for criminal negligence when somebody is killed.
Lynch said the need for the new law was clear when he announced indictments stemming from the Feb. 20 West Warwick nightclub blaze, which killed 100 and injured more than 200 others.
The indictments against the club owners and the Great White tour manager included counts based on each of the 100 deaths, but there was no way to file charges based on the severe injuries that others received, he said.
Lynch said that fact weighed on him when he went to the West Valley Inn on Dec. 9 to announce the indictments to survivors and relatives of the dead. "I knew there was bad news that I had to tell people," he said. "They are all victims, but by law they are not considered victims. That is a slap in the face to the people who have to live with that every day."
So Lynch is pressing to create a new category of criminal offense called "criminally negligent battery." The offense, a felony, would apply to "any person whose criminal negligence proximately causes the serious bodily injury of another." Conviction would carry a prison sentence of up to 10 years and/or a fine of up to $10,000.
According to Lynch's office, 23 other states have similar laws, including Connecticut, New Hampshire and Maine.
So why hasn't Rhode Island adopted the law before? "Sometimes circumstances drive it," Lynch said. "A lot of laws come on the books after the fact."
If adopted in Rhode Island, the law could not be applied retroactively to The Station fire. "I wish the tool had been available for us in this case," Lynch said. But he said he has asked for support for the bill "to protect other people in the future."
Andrew Horwitz, a Roger Williams University law professor, said he thinks the proposal is a mistake.
"There's a sad trend in this country to overcriminalize," said Horwitz, a former chairman of the Rhode Island Affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union. "We as a public seem to think that charging people with crimes and incarcerating people is the solution to many social problems, but in many cases, it's not."
Normally, the criminal system is reserved for the "most egregious conduct," Horwitz said, and most crimes require that people intended to do something wrong. But this bill uses the term "battery," which does not require the element of intent.
"We don't criminalize making mistakes, being stupid," Horwitz said. But people can sue, he said, noting that lawsuits have been filed in The Station fire. "So what's the value of criminalizing negligence?" he asked. "There's already an economic deterrent. Are you getting any added deterrent?"
The bill's House sponsor, Rep. Peter T. Ginaitt, D-Warwick, argued that the new law is needed in Rhode Island.
"Unfortunately, something tragic did happen," said Ginaitt, a rescue captain who was at The Station fire scene. "But out of every tragedy does come things that we can learn from."
"While we don't like to overprosecute," Ginaitt said, "this is certainly something that we have discovered through this investigation with the attorney general and through the tragedy of Feb. 20."
The bill's Senate sponsor, Sen. Joseph M. Polisena, D-Johnston, said that, as a former firefighter, he knows "this legislation will not bring back those who lost their lives." But, he said, "Hopefully, it will give the families and the victims some solace." And, he said, "In the future, those who cause serious bodily injury and death must be held accountable."
A similar bill was introduced last month by Rep. Norman L. Landroche Jr., D-West Warwick, a firefighter who was among the first responders to the blaze. Lynch said, "His intent was great, but the text, respectfully, is not the answer. It's not the proper wording that will assist this office and, more importantly, judges and juries."
Ginaitt noted the Landroche bill had the support of the House leadership. "So that indicates to me the leadership is cognizant of the issue and pretty much endorsing the issue," he said. "I'd like to think 'smooth sailing' is the term we can use. I'm sure there will some dialogue about some of the differences of the bills, and we can craft something that's a compromise."
