Director faces corporate manslaughter charge

A company director is due to appear in the crown court charged with corporate manslaughter, in news which may highlight the importance of health and safety in the workplace.

Peter Eaton, director of Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings, could face time in jail if he is found guilty of the charge.

The case comes after geologist Alexander Wright died in a mudslide last September as he was collecting soil samples from a trench in Stroud, Gloucestershire.

Mr Eaton is the first man to be tried under the recently introduced Corporate Manslaughter Act 2007, in addition to facing charges of health and safety violation.

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Should he be found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter he could face the maximum punishment of a life term prison sentence and a charge of guilty to corporate manslaughter brings with it a limitless fine.

Meanwhile, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health’s Construction Group has revealed that between 2007-08, 72 workers were killed on construction sites in the UK.