Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS : COURTS : Contractor Convicted in Death of Workman

A Municipal Court jury convicted a Buena Park contractor and his firm of violating the state labor code when a construction worker was crushed to death at a building project.

Donald W. Frank and his firm, Donlan Corp., were convicted of four misdemeanor charges stemming from the death of Pomona carpenter Joseph Santangelo, who was crushed under a 40-foot concrete panel that collapsed.

Among the violations were failing to provide bracing plans at the construction site and failing to provide vertical shoring for the sixth floor of the 10-story, 320-room hotel, which was formerly the Granada Royale Hometel and is now the Embassy Suites Hotel.

Two huge slabs that were to be used as the fifth and sixth floors had just been lowered into place by a crane about 6:30 a.m. on July 24, 1984, when the both floors suddenly collapsed, crushing the 26-year-old Santangelo and injuring another worker.

“We don’t get the contractor into court too often, so it’s kind of an important decision,” said Ray Booth, acting district manager of the state Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal-OSHA).