I would guess he will get a stiff penalty from OSHA and likely face a wrongful death lawsuit for his reckless behavior.
NEW YORK — A crane rigger was acquitted Thursday of manslaughter charges stemming from the collapse of a New York City crane in 2008, a disaster that killed six construction workers and a tourist, hurt two dozen others and left a swath of damage in midtown Manhattan.
The way I read it, the heart of this case centered around whether or not this man acted recklessly. He had people vouch that he is well respected and usually diligent in his work. Therefore, the thinking goes, he just made an isolated mistake. While tragic, it was not part of a pattern and his general way of doing things.
While I'm not justifying this particular case, could this not be us? If we make a tragic mistake, hopefully our liability insurance will deal with the families on a civil level. Criminally, I certainly hope I won't go to jail because I forgot to convert feet to inches.
