Kate Woodcroft

The accused, a project manager on a balcony restoration project, was charged with four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm after a swing stage collapsed, causing five workers to fall 100 feet.

The court found that the accused had the authority to direct the workers and breached his duty under s. 217.1 of the Criminal Code by permitting six workers to board the swing stage when he knew there were only two lifelines available.

The court held that this failure constituted a marked and substantial departure from the standard of a reasonable supervisor, showing wanton and reckless disregard for the workers' lives and safety.

The accused's negligence was found to be a significant contributing cause of the deaths and injuries, and he was found guilty on all counts.

In a criminal negligence trial arising from a fatal swing stage collapse, the court considered whether the Crown could tender selected pre-trial statements by the accused without introducing a later video-recorded interview.

Applying the entire statement rule, the court held that fairness required the second statement and the third statement to be treated together because the Crown sought to use the second statement as an admission of negligence, while the third contained the accused's fuller explanation of his supervisory duties.

The first statement, however, was limited to the accused's identification of himself as a supervisor and did not require the later interview to be admitted for fairness.

The Crown could therefore adduce the first statement alone, but not the second without the third.