U.S. Sino Investment

Description

Mercado, a day laborer, died when a 12 feet deep unshored trench collapsed on him. The CEO, Richard Liu, left for China, leaving his assistant and Project Manager, Dan Luo, in charge of the project during his absence. On January 25, a city building inspector issued a stop work order after seeing the trench was not shored, and instructed Luo to consult with a soil engineer. The stop work order required that a soil engineer review the site and determine whether any action was needed, and to provide recommendations for shoring. The next day, a city inspector visited the site and said crews were on site, but not working. However, workers were back on the job the day of the incident. It took several days for rescuers to recover the body. Cal/OSHA found that the company did not have state permits for excavations 5 feet or deeper, or proper reinforcements in the trench that collapsed. The Contractors State License Board suspended the general building contractor license of US-Sino Investment, Inc. in February 2012 for failure to comply with state workers compensation insurance laws.

Prosecutors:
Deputy District Attorney Bud Porter
Incident Type: Trench Collapse
County: Santa Clara
State: CA
Date: Jan. 28, 2012
Additional Materials
Folder for U.S. Sino Investment materials
Available Case Materials Include:
Advocacy Materials Media Clips & Gov't. Press
OSHA inspection detail
Contact for Additional Information:
Unavailable
Victims
First Last Age Title Employer Injury Type
Raul Zapata Mercado Unavailable Day Laborer U.S. Sino Investment Fatality
Defendants
Name Type Title Plea Info. Conviction Sentence
Richard Xin Liu Individual CEO/Owner Unavailable Convicted at trial of involuntary manslaughter for acting with criminal negligence by proceeding with construction of a home despite the city's stop work order. Sentenced to serve 2 years in county jail. The judge rejected the defense's bid for community service and the prosecutor's request for the 4 year maximum sentence. Released from prison in May 2016.
Crimes Charged: Penal Crimes: Involuntary Manslaughter
Other Crimes: Unavailable
Dan Luo Individual Project Manager Unavailable Convicted at trial of involuntary manslaughter for acting with criminal negligence by proceeding with construction of a home despite the city's stop work order. Also found guilty of three felony labor code violations. Sentenced to serve 2 years in county jail. The judge rejected the defense's bid for community service and the prosecutor's request for the 4 year maximum sentence.
Crimes Charged: Penal Crimes: Involuntary Manslaughter
Other Crimes: Labor Code violation causing death to an employee (3 counts) (Cal. Lab. Code Sec. 6425)
U.S. Sino Investment Inc. Entity Entity Unavailable Unavailable
Crimes Charged: Penal Crimes: Unavailable
Other Crimes: Unavailable