When authorities arrived in a gated Milpitas hills community this weekend, they were expecting the worst: 911 dispatchers had reported a bad accident at the site where a construction crew was building a small mansion.

They found something even more gruesome than they could have imagined: a worker buried alive, crushed by an avalanche of soil. He was dead by the time rescue workers arrived, with only the top of his head visible.

Now police and state investigators are considering filing criminal charges against the contractor, who they say shouldn’t have been working at the site.

Just three days before Saturday’s deadly accident, city inspectors deemed the site was too dangerous and ordered the construction company to stop all work immediately. A combination of poor work by the contractor and the previous weekend’s rains increased the risk of the steep hillside collapsing, city officials said.

But the contractor, Fremont-based U.S.-Sino Investment, kept working on the new 5,800-square-foot house, anyway, city officials said Monday. A 37-year-old carpenter was doing wood work in a 12-foot ditch when it caved in, crushing him and killing him almost instantly, authorities said.

“It’s is one of those heartbreaking situations,” said Erika Monterroza, a spokeswoman for Cal/OSHA, the workplace safety agency that is investigating for the state.

Making this situation even more unusual, Monterroza said, was that it was initially too dangerous to remove the body. If officials jumped into the ditch, they would risk being buried, too, she said.

Late Monday evening, officials had finally pulled away the dirt and plywood and removed the body. But they have been unable to identify him.

The other half-dozen workers who were at the site at 814 Calaveras Ridge Drive were working on another part of the home when the accident occurred around10 a.m.They were all uninjured.

Late Monday evening, officials had finally pulled away the dirt and plywood and removed the body. But they have been unable to identify him.

The other half-dozen workers who were at the site at 814 Calaveras Ridge Drive were working on another part of the home when the accident occurred around10 a.m.They were all uninjured

Many questions remained unanswered Monday.

The Milpitas police and fire departments and theSanta Clara County coroner all referred comment to the city’s building department.

A man who answered the cell phone of Richard Liu, who is listed as the CEO of U.S.-Sino Investment, declined to comment and hung up on a reporter.

The city’s chief building official, Keyvan Irannejad, said authorities won’t know until Tuesday at the earliest whether criminal charges will be filed.

Irannejad said the workers had previously cut a 12-foot-deep hole at the site to build the house’s foundation. But they didn’t put any system in place to “shore” the hole to ensure the trench would not collapse, Irannejad said.

After city building inspectors visited the site Wednesday, they issued a stop-work order until U.S.-Sino could prove they had shored the trench. Anyone found violating the order can be fined $1,000, but the city had not gone back to enforce it.

“They just ignored our stop-work notice,” he said. “When we got there (after the accident), we didn’t know they’d been working.”

Irannejad said Milpitas has never worked with U.S.-Sino before the permit was issued for the house in August. Monterroza said the state has no record of violations at the company, which began operating in 2008.

U.S.-Sino could face fines, and both police and Cal/OSHA could recommend prosecutors file criminal charges.

Beyond Workers’ Comp

Many injured construction workers assume they are only able to receive workers’ compensation benefits for injuries on the job site.  A careful analysis of the accident by an attorney experienced in construction wrongful death claims may reveal other sources of financial compensation.  If an employee of another subcontractor was responsible for the falling debris, that injured party or heirs of his estate may pursue a wrongful death claim , for example.  a general contractor who failed to maintain a safe workplace may also be liable.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler have a long history of winning impressive results for construction injury victims and the family members of those who died a wrongful death due to construction accidents.

Demand accountability from those responsible for the dangerous conditions of the construction site accidents.  Many times the insurance companies will play “hardball” if you try to settle the case yourself or you have employed a lawyer who does not have the litigation experience to handle such a complex case.  We at the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler have twenty years of litigation experience and know how to handle the insurance companies to your advantage.  We are prepared to front all costs required for the necessary investigation and expert witnesses needed to prepare your case for trial.

The laws regarding construction accident cases are complex and include many facets of the law. It is vital to surviving family members to seek the advice of an experienced construction accident lawyer such as Gary A Kessler at the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler to protect your rights and those of your loved ones.

California construction accident attorney Gary A Kessler and the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler are compassionate and fully understand that you are attempting to cope with extreme serious injuries associated with a construction site accident.  Such accidents can lead to catastrophic injuries or even death.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler carefully selects its wrongful death and construction accident cases so that we may give you (the client) the substantial personal attention neccessary to obtain a successful result for your case.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler is prepared to front all costs required for a thorough investigation and top expert witnesses to prepare for trial of your case.  As in all construction accident and serious personal injury cases, we advance all legal costs to prepare and present our client’s claim, and receive for our services only a percentage of what we recover for our attorney fees on their behalf.  Upon settlement our costs shall be reimbursed to us from the gross recovery.  If there is no recovery, no attorneys fees or costs are owed to our firm. Contact the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler today so we can preserve the evidence and demand compensation and accountability from the responsible party!