Firms fined over death of girl, 7

The Kerrs Rd premises of Ryco Dies and Dominion Bookbinders, where 7-year-old Shaelian Ross was crushed by a gate. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Three companies and a director were yesterday ordered to pay more than $120,000 in fines and reparation after a steel gate fell off its hinges, killing a 7-year-old girl.

Shaelian Mary Rae Ross died in Starship hospital last year, a fortnight after the accident in the driveway of Amcor Packaging and Dominion Bookbinders in Kerrs Rd, Wiri.

The Homai Primary School pupil had gone with her sister Rickylee Peita, 10, to help their mum, Lilian Peita, with her cleaning job at Amcor.

When they arrived, the children got out to unlock the gates and Ms Peita drove through.

The mesh-faced steel frame crashed off its hinges and Shaelian was found unconscious next to it.

She was taken to Middlemore Hospital before being transferred to Starship, where life support was later turned off.

In the Manukau District Court yesterday, Judge Charles Blackie spoke of her mother's sorrow.

"It has deeply affected her and the whanau - they are still grieving and she suffers from extreme sadness."

The whanau did not want reparation, but he hoped the money would go some way to paying for Shaelian's headstone.

He ordered Amcor to pay $60,000. Dominion Bookbinders, Ms Peita's employer Jiffy Cleaning and its director Murray Clinton, were also fined.

In March, Dominion, Jiffy and Clinton were found guilty of breaching the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, in relation to the death.

The charges included not taking steps to ensure that actions or inactions of employees at work did not harm another person, and failing to notify the Department of Labour of the accident.

Amcor had earlier pleaded guilty to two charges, and company representatives had attended restorative justice meetings with the family.

Shaelian's grandfather Mike Peita told the Herald the whanau were "very pleased with Amcor".

He also paid tribute to his "very giving" granddaughter.

It was typical of the youngster to want to help her mum with the cleaning, he said.

"She was a very giving child ... If she had a biscuit on her plate she would give it to you."

The pair used to walk together "for miles and miles" and Shaelian would insist on helping her grandfather to cross the road.

In his March decision, Judge Blackie said Clinton did not tell Ms Peita her children were prohibited from the workplace, despite knowing she planned to take them there.

He also failed to obtain and show Ms Peita a list of hazards and controls at Amcor.

Judge Blackie said that Dominion and Amcor had an understanding that whoever was responsible for damage to the gate would pay for the repairs.

There had been two previous incidents, indicating the companies knew about problems with the gate, and an employee of Dominion had fixed it after a truck hit it in October 2008, four months before the accident.

"It is clear from the evidence I have heard that, from time to time, the gates would swing in the wind, as they were not properly secured when open," Judge Blackie said.

"There were occasions when a swinging gate would be struck by a vehicle, particularly heavy trucks."

He said Dominion had failed to identify the gate as a hazard, investigate two previous problems with it, include it in its maintenance programme or ensure it was properly repaired after the October incident.

An Amcor Packaging director last night said management in Australia were dealing with the case, so he could not comment.

And Mr Clinton of Jiffy Cleaning - which is no longer in business - said he did not want to comment.

The incident, which has not been publicly revealed until now, follows the 2007 death of 3-year-old Louis Schmidt-Peke, fatally injured when a 100kg metal gate fell and hit him on the head at his kohanga reo at the Hoani Waititi Marae in West Auckland.

FINES
* Amcor, which trades as Ryco Dies and shares the driveway with Dominion Bookbinders, to pay $60,000 to mother Lilian Peita in reparation and fined $20,000 for not ensuring that no action or inaction of any employee while at work harmed another person.Dominion Bookbinders fined $27,000 on the same charge.
* Jiffy Cleaning, Ms Peita's employer, fined $17,000.
* Jiffy Cleaning director Murray Clinton fined $1000, and all three firms fined for not notifying the Department of Labour.