An employer has pleaded guilty to criminal charges after investigation into deadly nitrogen leak held the company responsible.
California Ranch Foods, a subsidiary of Golden West Food Group, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts after being criminally charged in connection with the 2020 deaths of two workers fatally exposed to nitrogen gas.
A Cal/OSHA investigation shows the victims, Baldemar Gonsales and Maria Osyguss, died after a malfunction in a nitrogen system led to a hazardous gas release on Dec. 1, 2020. Cal/OSHA’s investigation reportedly found critical failures in safety procedures and training related to the handling of pressurized gas systems
The case followed a criminal referral by Cal/OSHA’s Bureau of Investigations. It was prosecuted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, California Ranch Foods must:
- Invest $1.6 million in safety improvements at the facility
- Pay $50,000 to BOI to support enforcement efforts
- Serve three years of probation
- Pay a $1 million criminal fine
- Donate $4 million to local food banks
- Acknowledge a $35 million civil settlement with the victims’ families
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