news

Criminal Charges May be Filed

By Waldo Jaquith
Aug.26.2004
As the Chicago sewage-dumping story gains wider and wider coverage, the news came out today that criminal charges may be filed against DMB bus driver Stefan Wohl, who is the one who is accused of draining a DMB tour bus' sewage tank into the Chicago River and on a tour boat full of passengers. The potential for criminal charges came after Mayor Richard Daley weighed in, urging prosecutors to seek criminal charges against Wohl, in addition to the civil suit filed yesterday against Wohl and the band. Daley made a point of declaring how much that he likes Dave Matthews Band, and that it's Wohl with whom he's unhappy. The band continues to stick by Wohl, reserving judgment until they see the video in question, but they have offered to provide DNA samples to check for a match with the effluent. The attorney general's office has declined, saying that they don't need DNA to make their case. While the story has gained greater and greater coverage in the past 48 hours, the band has been silent on the matter, allowing themselves to be lynched in the popular media. If they don't step up to the plate soon, things are going to get worse before they get better.