A Colorado construction company owner is facing a felony manslaughter charge related to a federal investigation into a deadly trench collapse in November 2021.
Owner of the now-defunct A4S LLC construction company Peter Dillon, of Gypsum, Colo., turned himself to Summit County law enforcement after County Judge Edward J. Casias issued an arrest warrant Jan. 23 for reckless manslaughter, according to a Jan. 26 news release.
"There is no excuse for Peter Dillon's failures to protect workers when federal requirements clearly outline and require safety measures proven to save lives," Regional Solicitor John Rainwater said in the release. "Today’s arrest by the Summit County Sheriff's Office cannot recover a life lost in this senseless tragedy, but it is a step toward seeking justice for the family."
Dillon is charged in the Nov. 16, 2021, death of 23-year-old employee Marlon Alfredo Diaz, who died in a trench collapse in Breckenridge, Colo., when he and other workers were installing a sewer line at a residential construction site, the release reported.
Dillon already has agreed to forfeit any future ownership, leadership or management position involving trenching or excavation or workplace safety and health oversight, according to the release.
DOL subsequently proposed penalties of $449,583 and placed A4S in Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Severe Violator Enforcement Program, the release reported. DOL also referred the case to the fifth judicial district attorney's office for criminal charges for the company's "refusal to require safety protection, despite worsening trench conditions that included at least one trench collapse."
Employers should take an example from Diaz's death, OSHA Regional Administrator Jennifer S. Rous, said in the news release.
"Let this tragedy serve as a reminder to other employers who willingly fail in their responsibilities to keep workers safe that the U.S. Department of Labor will exhaust every resource to hold employers accountable for protecting workers, including recommending criminal prosecution," Rous said in the release. "OSHA has pledged to work with state prosecutors to raise the stakes in appropriate trenching death cases, and this is an example."
