Cafe owner considers Volendam appeal

Cafe owner considers Volendam appeal
The owner of Volendam cafe that caught fire more than two years killing 14 youths and injuring almost 300 others celebrating New Year's Eve is considering an appeal against his conviction and sentence of 240 hours community service. Lawyers representing Jan Veerman have lodged an appeal with Haarlem Court, although they have not definitely decided to proceed with the legal action. The period in which an appeal can be lodged expires on Friday.

Haarlem Court found Veerman guilty on 18 July of culpable homicide and negligence leading to the fire on the night of 31 December 2000. He was given a 12-month suspended jail term and the community work order. Defence lawyer Tjalling van der Groot said a final decision over the appeal would be made at a later date. The delay is due in part to the vacation of several colleagues at the law firm Anker en Anker and the fact the lawyers have not yet had a chance to discuss the matter with Veerman, newspaper De Volkskrant reported on Wednesday.

The lawyers also want to talk to Veerman — who lost a nephew in the blaze — about the compensation case lodged against him by 214 victims and their lobby group, BSNV. Veerman's criminal conviction could have implications for the pending civil procedure, which will be carried out mainly by correspondence and could take several years. The prosecution had demanded a 16-month jail term on allegations that fire safety regulations had been breached. It also demanded fines totalling EUR 3,000 because of evidence that cafe De Hemel was operating without a permit when the fire broke out. The court, however, declared the permit evidence inadmissible.

The court also acquitted the 35-year-old cafe manager, John Veerman (no relation), of culpable homicide and negligence. The prosecution had demanded a 10-month jail sentence. Laura Veerman, 27, the daughter of cafe owner Veerman, was also cleared. The public prosecution has not yet decided if it will appeal the sentence imposed on Jan Veerman or the acquittal of John Veerman and was discussing the matter on Wednesday, a Novum news report said.