Street lobbies for Pier 34 owner
He urged a judge not to send Michael Asbell to jail.
Mayor Street has written to the Philadelphia judge who is set to impose sentences this week in the disastrous Pier 34 nightclub collapse, saying that sending the pier owner to prison would not serve "the interests of the general public."
The three-sentence "letter of support" was sent on behalf of the real estate developer Michael Asbell, who pleaded no contest in May to involuntary manslaughter and other charges in connection with the May 2000 collapse that led to the drowning deaths of three young women.
"There is no question in my mind that his incarceration would serve neither his best interests nor the interests of the general public," wrote Street, who called Asbell "an important civic leader" who has been "committed to this city."
Asbell, of Merion, who turned 65 yesterday, and the club's operator, Eli Karetny, 66, of Cherry Hill, are scheduled to be sentenced Friday by Common Pleas Court Judge Sheila Woods-Skipper, who presided over the trial that ended in November with a hung jury.
On the morning of the scheduled start of a retrial, Karetny pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and recklessly endangering 43 people who were injured, and Asbell entered the no-contest plea.
Lawyers for both men are expected to put on a detailed presentation Friday in an effort to keep their clients out of prison, portraying them as well-regarded local businessmen who never intended to break the law. Prosecutors have said they intend to seek incarceration.
Both defendants face possible prison terms, including a maximum of 21/2 to five years for each of the three involuntary-manslaughter charges.
Street's letter was part of a sentencing memorandum package filed by defense attorneys Thomas A. Bergstrom and Norris Gelman on behalf of Asbell.
Defense attorney Frank DeSimone, who represents Karetny, said he intended to present a packet of letters from Karetny's relatives and people who worked with him, as well as records relating to a number of medical problems.
DeSimone said Karetny has diabetes and a heart condition, suffered a mini-stroke, and probably could not have taken the strain of a second trial - much less the stress of a prison sentence.
Though prosecutors contended that Asbell and Karetny had been warned repeatedly about the pier's dire condition - including on the day of the collapse - the defense contended that the two men would never have risked anyone's life by opening the pier that night if they knew it was dangerous.
Assistant District Attorney John Doyle declined to comment yesterday on the defense filing, or to say anything about the sentencing proceeding.
The sentencing will be another milestone in the disaster, which hurled dozens of horrified patrons into the murky waters of the Delaware River when the pier collapsed suddenly on the night of May 18, 2000.
The three women - Monica Kristina Rodriguez, 21; DeAnn White, 25; and Jean Marie Ferraro, 27 - all worked at the New Jersey State Aquarium. They had gone to the Heat nightclub at the pier to celebrate various events.
Street was out of town when the tragedy happened, but upon his return, he set out in a utility boat to tour the mangled remains of the nightclub.
"It was chilling," the mayor said then of what he saw. "When you looked at it and you estimate the amount of that pier that dropped into the river, it's significant."