01:00 AM EDT on Wednesday, May 10, 2006

BY PAUL EDWARD PARKER
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE -- Daniel Michael Biechele is scheduled to be sentenced this afternoon for triggering the Station nightclub fire, which killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others.

The sentencing comes more than three years after the Feb. 20, 2003, fire.

And it follows two days of statements by relatives of those who died, statements that sometimes conjured laughter and often provoked tears in describing how those who died have been missed and what had made them so special.

Many of the speakers hinted at what punishment they thought would be appropriate for Biechele. Court rules barred them from recommending a sentence.

Some spoke of mercy, of accepting an apology from Biechele, of forgiveness. Others spoke of 100 innocents killed, of demanding justice for the 100 lives lost.

Journal photo / Mary Murphy

Daniel M. Biechele reacts to the statements read in court yesterday by the relatives of the Station fire victims. He is expected to be sentenced this afternoon for his role in the 2003 fire that killed 100 people.

Sometime this afternoon, Superior Court Judge Francis J. Darigan Jr. will define what form justice will take. At 1:30, prosecutors are scheduled to make their sentencing argument. They have said in court filings that they want Biechele to serve 10 years in prison, the maximum allowed under a plea agreement.

Then the defense will make its argument. Biechele's lawyer, Thomas G. Briody, has asked the court for community service.

After the lawyers are done, Biechele will have the chance to address the court. Briody declined to say yesterday whether his client plans to speak.

Last, Darigan is expected to pronounce sentence.

Biechele, 29, of Winter Springs, Fla., has had little to say in this case. He has stated his name and date of birth at various proceedings and answered routine questions from the court, mostly with yes or no answers. For most of the last two days, he has sat at the defense table, attentively watching as speakers addressed the court. He has maintained a stoic demeanor, though he occasionally could be seen swallowing hard or clenching his jaw at poignant moments.

At one point yesterday afternoon, he broke down in tears, his face turning red.

Dave Kane was speaking about his son, Nicholas O'Neill, 18, who died in the fire. At Kane's side was his wife, his son's mother, Joanne O'Neill.

"We don't seek revenge, your honor, we seek only justice. Unfortunately, the things that have happened have left us with the feeling and the realization that true justice is going to be an illusion today," Kane told the court.

"Our son Nicholas is very close to his mother, closer than any mother and son I have ever known. They are truly joined at the heart. Many times in the past days, we have thought of Mr. Biechele's mother and the impact this nightmare must have on her. With this in mind, we know that our gentle, loving, funny, sincere, spiritual son Nicholas would want us to accept Mr. Biechele's apology. That's the kind of boy Nicky is. That's the kind of boy we raised."

Kane's voice cracked just after he mentioned Biechele's mother, and that's about the time Biechele began sobbing, dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief.

In an interview after court, Kane said he doesn't know what sentence he would have recommended to Darigan if he had been allowed. "I'm not really sure. I think he needs to do some time, if only to satisfy the people who are so done in here," said Kane. He added, though, that some sort of community service that helped Biechele repair damage done by the fire might be more appropriate. "Make something happen from this," Kane said. "Putting this kid away helps nobody, and it hurts him."

Annmarie Swidwa spoke about the loss of her daughter, Bridget Sanetti.

Swidwa apologized to the court for not having written out a statement. "I've been trying for three years, and I can't."

She said she was 14 when Bridget was born, on Christmas Eve. "She was my Christmas present. She came home from the hospital in a Christmas stocking."

Swidwa lives in Ft. Myers, Fla., and Sanetti, 25, had visited her for a week, ending on Feb. 20, 2003. "I put her on a plane that morning. I hugged her, I kissed her. Know the last thing I ever said to her was 'I love you.' " Later that night, Sanetti died in the fire.

Swidwa described how her own mother was affected by Sanetti's death.

"My mother, after the fire, was diagnosed with cancer. And I sat down and I talked to my mom and I told her that when I first found out that she was going to die I was actually jealous because she'd get to go to heaven to be with Bridget. And she cried and she said to me she said I'm thinking the same thing. My mom was 58 years old and she chose not to fight for her life because she didn't want Bridget to be alone in heaven."

Swidwa told of feeling empathy for a woman driving on the highway in a car with a bumper sticker that said her daughter had been killed by a drunken driver.

After talking about the bumper sticker, Swidwa paused. "I can't finish. I'm sorry, I have more I want to say, and I can't say it." She walked to the back of the courtroom in tears, and sobbed as she passed through the doors and into the hall.

The final speaker yesterday afternoon identified herself as Heidi Longley. Known as Heidi M. Peralta at the time of the fire, she was the girlfriend of Ty Longley. Longley, 31, who perished in the fire, was the guitarist for Great White, the band whose fireworks Biechele ignited, touching off the fire.

Heidi Longley appeared on a list of speakers for the afternoon court session, but Darigan announced she would not be able to attend because she had missed a flight. But just before the court recessed, Darigan learned she had arrived.

As Longley approached the microphone, she undid a raincoat still dripping with raindrops. She later explained that she had come directly from Chicago to the courthouse, after missing two flights because of delays.

"Ty was supposed to be my life partner," she told the court. "When a musician goes to work, he's not supposed to not come home. It's not supposed to be a dangerous job."

She said, "Ty was the most gentle person you could ever have known. He was loving. He was caring. He never did any type of drugs in his life. His biggest addiction was Starbucks and Aveda hair products."

Longley said that, at the time of the fire, she was three months pregnant with a boy. "My son has never known his father. We never got to go to ultrasounds together. We'll never have family portraits. We'll never have any of that, and it's not fair."

She said she has tried to put the fire behind her. "I've tried to move forward, tried to not to be angry anymore. There was a time in my life when I was so angry, even with God. Why would you give me everything I've ever wanted in my life just to take it away before all my dreams had come true?"

She said Longley would not want her to hold onto anger.

"Anger doesn't solve anything. To be angry with anybody doesn't solve anything," she said. "God wants us all to forgive people. I don't know if ever I'll feel complete forgiveness in my heart for what happened to Ty and so many other victims."

The morning session of court yesterday was reserved for prosecutors Randall White, William Ferland and Christopher Bush to read statements about fire victims whose relatives did not want to speak in court. Some were not present, some were briefly acknowledged in the courtroom gallery and others stood beside prosecutors as their statements were read. In all, 20 victims were remembered. For some, their relatives wanted little more than their name to be mentioned in court. For others, the statements went on for several minutes.

pparker@projo.com / (401) 277-7360

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