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Job Site Corruption Linked to NYC Crane Collapses

by jordan | July 16, 2008 at 10:08 am | 88 views | 1 comment

With all those cranes towering over New York City, one would like to believe that the people operating them are fully qualified to do so. One would be mistaken. A 2006 lawsuit over job-site corruption exposed several weak links in the safety of construction sites, which bevame very important indeed on March 15 and May 30.

“You knew full well he couldn’t even run any machines?” Gerald Shargel, a defense lawyer, asked the former official, John Coriasco, who was testifying for the government. “True,” responded Mr. Coriasco. “He didn’t have the competence or the skill to operate a machine, right?” Mr. Shargel continued. “He couldn’t write his name,” Mr. Coriasco replied.

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