A construction boss has received a jail sentence for gross negligence after a woman was crushed to death by a stack of unglazed window frames
A jail sentence has been handed to a construction boss after the death of a member of the public. Amanda Telfer, 43, was killed in what was described as an incident of gross negligence.
Telfer died when a stack of unglazed window frames collapsed on her as she walked past the building site in Hanover Square, London on 30 August 2012.
Unsecured frames
The frames, which weight 655kg, were stacked against a wall following delivery the previous day. Members of the public said they had seen the frames move in the wind and were concerned they may fall into the street.
Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson QC said the way the frames were situated was a “clear and serious risk of death”.
He added: “There were a series of obvious and, in many cases, straightforward steps that could have been taken to avoid that risk – ranging from cancellation, delay, refusal of delivery on the one hand, to the storage, the use of straps and barriers. None were taken by any of the defendants and Amanda Telfer died as a result.”
Jail sentence for breaching health and safety
Kelvin Adsett, 64, supervisor at IS Europe Ltd, was found guilty of breaching health and safety regulations and received a 12 month sentence for manslaughter.
Judge Peter Rook QC spoke at sentencing, stating: “Your actions contributed to the wholly needless and untimely death of Amanda Telfer.”
Furthermore, he told the defendant he had destroyed his life as the result of “an aberration of carelessness” and had shown “reckless disregard”.
IS Europe Ltd was found guilty of two health and safety breaches. The firm had become dormant due to Adsett’s ill health and as such only had £250 in the bank.
The judge said: “There would have been a fine of £100,000. However, given ISE’s limited assets, the only fine I can order is £250.”
Other sentences were also handed down to Damian Lakin-Hall, 50. The Westgreen Construction Limited site manager was found guilty of failing to take reasonable care of safety while at work and received a six months’ jail sentence, suspended for two years.
£100,000 worth of costs will be split between the three defendants.
Accountability
Telfer’s parents said: “If construction companies and the people who work for them are not held to account for such high levels of negligence and incompetence, then none of us is safe walking the streets next to construction sites. The health and safety training being given is totally inadequate, if risk of death to passersby is ignored.”
Graham Partridge, of the Crown Prosecution Service, added: “If Kelvin Adsett, Damian Lakin-Hall and IS Europe had complied with their legal responsibilities, Amanda Telfer would not have died. They were delivering and storing large, very heavy window frames and should have known that, unsecured, they presented a serious danger to the public on what was a windy day.
“The CPS case was that the defendants’ conduct was so bad that those involved bore criminal responsibility for Ms Telfer’s tragic death. We hope that these convictions will bring some sense of justice for her family.”
