It's been over two years since that 20-story high crane came crashing down on Manhattan, killing seven people and injuring another 24 victims. Rigging contractor William Rapetti was charged with 20 criminal counts, including seven counts of manslaughter over the incident. However, Associated Press reports that a judge acquitted the contractor of all charges last week.
William Rapetti was the only person to face criminal charges over the incident, where prosecutors argued that the man did a recklessly inadequate job of securing the nearly 200-foot crane. Yet New York criminal defense attorneys argued that the reason for the unsteady crane was because of engineering decisions and shoddy welding; which were not his responsibilities.
"[Prosecutors] wanted to portray him as reckless, Wild Bill Rapetti, and that just wasn't substantiated by the facts," New York Criminal Defense Attorney Arthur Aidala told Associated Press.
William Rapetti could have faced up to 15 years in prison if he had been convicted of all the counts that he had been charged with, but skilled lawyers were able to represent the man and make sure that all evidence was properly analyzed, including his role in the construction project with the fatal accident.
Manslaughter crimes are treated very severely and people are sometimes held responsible for the death of an individual, when there was no criminal intent or if they had no role in the killing of the person. When this occurs, it's important to contact a New York criminal defense attorney so that all the legal rights of the defendant can be protected.
Related Resources:
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Trial of the 2008 Crane Collapse Begins on June 21 (FindLaw's New York Criminal Law Blog)
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Manslaughter Crimes (FindLaw's LawBrain)
