EXHIBIT "H" PART 2
52 2 A. No. 3 Q. Did any lawyers ask you any 4 questions about your medical condition? 5 A. No. 6 Q. Did the judge ask you any 7 questions about your returning to work? 8 A. No. 9 Q. How about any of the lawyers, 10 did they ask you any questions about 11 returning to work at these hearings? 12 A. No. 13 Q. Do you know if your Workers' 14 Compensation case was ever settled? 15 A. No. 16 Q. You don't know or it wasn't? 17 A. I don't know. 18 Q. Okay. Besides the Workers' 19 Compensation claim for this accident, have 20 you ever filed a Workers' Compensation 21 claim before or after? 22 A. No. 23 Q. Besides the accident that we're 24 here for today, have you ever had any other 25 workplace accidents?
53 2 A. No. 3 Q. Have you ever received 4 unemployment benefits? 5 A. In my life? 6 Q. In the last five years. 7 A. Yes. 8 Q. Are you currently receiving 9 unemployment benefits? 10 A. No. 11 Q. Have you applied? 12 A. No. 13 Q. When was the last time you 14 received unemployment benefits? 15 A. Maybe about three years ago. 16 Q. For how long? 17 A. Maybe for like three months. 18 Two or three months. 19 Q. How about before that? 20 A. I don't know. It's too far. 21 It's too far to remember. 22 Q. Is it a common occurrence to 23 apply for unemployment benefits when the 24 work is slow? 25 A. Yes.
2 Q. Do you commonly apply for 3 unemployment benefits when the work is 4 slow? 5 A. Yes. 6 Q. Do you have any plans to apply 7 for unemployment benefits now? 8 A. No. 9 Q. After this accident did you 10 ever apply for unemployment benefits? 11 A. No. 12 Q. When was the longest you 13 received unemployment benefits for? 14 A. I don't remember. 15 Q. Okay. 16 MS. KALLFA: We're going to 17 renew our demand for an authorization 18 for the Department of Labor. That 19 was included in our combined 20 discovery demands. We will put that 21 demand again in writing. 22 MR. LOCKHART: Just for the 23 record, what are you talking about? 24 MS. KALLFA: The Department of 25 Labor for his unemployment records (631) 839-6153 www.reynoldsreporting-com
55 2 was demanded in the combined 3 discovery demands. We're going to 4 renew that demand in writing. 5 THE WITNESS: Can we speed this 6 up because I have to 7 MS. KALLFA: Let's go off the 8 record for a second. 9 MR. LOCKHART: Let's go off the 10 record. 11 THE VIDEOGRAPHER: The time 12 right now is 12:34 p.m. We're off 13 the record. 14 (Recess taken) 15 THE VIDEOGRAPHER: The time 16 right now is 12:40 p.m. We're back 17 on the record. 18 BY MS. KALLFA: 19 Q. Okay, Mr. Gibson, we 20 established that the date of your accident 21 was November 14, 2016, correct? 22 A. Yes. 23 Q. You were working at the Queens 24 Plaza project? 25 A. Yes. Reynolds Reporting, Inc,
56 2 Q. Do you know what Pinnacle's 3 role in the project was? 4 A. They were the contractors. 5 Q. For what kind of work were they 6 supposed to be performing? 7 A. The cement. 8 Q. Do you know what other 9 subcontractors were working at this 10 project? 11 A. No.. 12 Q. While you were working at this 13 project, you said you had been there since 14 January 2016, correct? 15 A. Yes. 16 Q. What were your tasks during 17 those ten months and your duties and 18 responsibilities? 19 A. Pour concrete. 20 Q. What specific tasks were you 21 doing at this project? 22 A. I'm a cement and concrete 23 laborer. Pour concrete. 24 Q. Besides concrete, what else 25 were you doing?
57 2 A. And cleaning up the concrete 3 that we poured. 4 Q. Anything else? 5 A. Pretty much housekeeping and 6 concrete. 7 Q. As far as the concrete, it was 8 just the leveling concrete or anything 9 else? 10 A. Yes. Just concrete. That's 11 all I do. 12 Q. Okay. But were you pouring the 13 foundation? 14 A. Yes. Pour concrete. 15 Q. Were you pouring walls? 16 A. Yes. That's what you want me 17 to yes, pouring concrete. 18 Q. Yes. I want you to tell me 19 specifically, what tasks were you 20 performing at this project? 21 A. Pouring concrete. I'm not a 22 carpenter. I pour concrete. 23 Q. Right. 24 A. That's it. 25 Q. So doing the floors? (631) 839-6153 www.reynoldsreporting-com
58 2 A. Whatever consists of pouring 3 concrete, ma'am. It's pouring concrete. 4 Q. Okay. Where were you pouring 5 concrete? 6 A. The building. The whole 7 building. 8 Q. What parts of the building? 9 A. The walls, the floors. 10 Q. Any other tasks that you were 11 performing at this project? 12 A. Pouring concrete, housekeeping, 13 stacking. 14 Q. Anything else? 15 A. That's pretty much what we do. 16 Q. Did you ever perform any 17 stripping work at this project? 18 A. I'm not a stripper, no. 19 Q. You never performed any 20 stripping work at this project? 21 A. I pick up the trash from the 22 strippers, no. 23 Q. But the actual stripping work 24 you never performed, right? 25 A. No.
59 2 Q. The workers who performed the 3 stripping work, are they Local 6A as well? 4 A. Yes. 5 Q. Okay. Is there a distinction 6 between the concrete strippers and the 7 concrete laborers? 8 A. Yes. 9 Q. What is that distinction? 10 A. One gets a bar, the other one 11 gets a come-along. 12 Q. I'm sorry, what was that? 13 A. One gets a bar, one gets a 14 come-along. 15 Q. What does that mean? 16 A. Two different types of tools. 17 Q. What does the concrete stripper 18 do? 19 A. Strip molds. 20 Q. What are molds? 21 A. Wood. 22 Q. So forms? 23 A. Forms. 24 Q. When the concrete stripper 25 strips the forms, how do they do that?
60 2 A. They use their hammer or they 3 use a tool, a bar. 4 Q. What do they do with that tool? 5 A. They separate the concrete from 6 the wood. 7 Q. Is the wood held in place by 8 anything? 9 A. Different objects. 10 Q. Generally? 11 A. Nails, cleats, spikes, 12 reshores, braces. 13 Q. Do you know how to perform 14 stripping work? 15 A. That's not my job description. 16 Q. Do you know how to though? 17 A. Not really, no. 18 Q. Were you ever instructed on how 19 to perform stripping work? 20 A. No. 21 Q. What time did you get to work 22 on the date of the accident? 23 A. 7. 6:55, 6:45. I don't know. 24 Q. Approximately, right? 6:45 to
61 2 A. Yes. 3 Q. Okay. How many hours had you 4 slept the night before? 5 A. I don't know, ma'am. 6 Q. What time would you wake up to 7 go to work at this project? 8 A. About 3:45. 9 Q. In the morning? 10 A. Yes. 11 Q. What time would you go to bed 12 the night before generally? 13 A. Before 10. 14 Q. How did you get to work on the 15 date of the accident? 16 A. I take the subway. 17 Q. From Long Island? 18 A. You've got to take the train, 19 Long Island Rail Road, to subway. 20 Q. You take the LIRR to where? 21 A. To Jamaica. 22 Q. And then what train would you 23 take? 24 A. I take the F. 25 Q. Were you taking any medication
62 2 on the date of the accident? 3 A. No. 4 Q. Had you consumed any alcohol or 5 drugs 24 hours prior to the accident? 6 A. No. 7 Q. Were you a smoker at the time 8 of the accident? 9 A. No. 10 Q. Do you presently smoke? 11 A. No. 12 Q. Okay. Can you please provide 13 me a description of how the accident 14 occurred? 15 A. I was performing housekeeping. 16 I just came from a pour, performing 17 housekeeping. The floor was a mess. Guys 18 were stripping, and the object fell. 19 Q. What floor did the accident 20 occur on? 21 A. I believe the 44th. 22 Q. What did the 44th floor look 23 like on the date of the accident? 24 A. Dirty. 25 Q. I mean as far as a setup.
63 2 A. I don't know the dimensions. 3 Q. Were there rooms? 4 A. It was open. 5 Q. It was an open floor? 6 A. Yes. 7 Q. Was the floor poured already? 8 A. Yes. It was a poured floor. 9 Q. Concrete was dry? 10 A. Yes. 11 Q. What work was being performed 12 on the 44th floor that day? 13 A. They were stripping, cleaning, 14 stacking. 15 Q. Anything else? 16 A. No. 17 Q. No? 18 A. Just stripping, stacking and 19 housekeeping. 20 Q. On the 44th floor were there 21 any other trades besides the concrete 22 workers? 23 A. It was a rough floor, no. 24 Q. So just the concrete workers 25 were there?
64 2 A. Yes. 3 Q. Was it all Pinnacle workers? 4 A. Pretty much so, yes. 5 Q. Were there any non-pinnacle 6 workers there at the time of the accident? 7 A. No. Just Pinnacle. 8 Q. You said that people were 9 performing stripping work? 10 A. Yes. 11 Q. Was that for the walls, the 12 ceiling, something else? 13 A. The roof. The whole floor had 14 to go. 15 Q. The ceiling of that floor? 16 A. The whole floor. 17 Q. What do you mean the whole 18 floor? 19 A. The whole floor had to go. 20 They had to strip the whole floor. 21 Q. Okay, but were they doing the 22 walls, were they doing the ceiling, 23 something else? 24 A. When they strip, they don't 25 strip designated areas, They just come
65 2 back, some might be on the walls, some 3 might be on the roof, some might be on the 4 columns, then there's people cleaning up 5 the debris- Stuff like that. 6 Q. The date of the accident were 7 you on the 44th floor the entire day or 8 A. No. I was pouring concrete. 9 Q. On which floor? 10 A. On the 45th floor. 11 Q. Okay.. 12 A. The roof. 13 Q. So on the 45th floor, is that 14 what you would consider the deck that day? 15 A. Yes. 16 Q- Okay. 17 A. That was the deck of the day. 18 Q. How long had you been working 19 on the 45th floor on the 20 A. The pour ended around like 3 21 and some change. Like late after the day, 22 and I came down to do some housekeeping. 23 Q. You went down to the 44th floor 24 for the first time that day around 3 25 something?
66 2 A. Yes. After we finished 3 cleaning up. 4 Q. Before the date of the accident 5 had you been on the 44th floor before? 6 A. Yes. 7 Q. What had you been doing when 8 you had been working on the 44th floor 9 before? 10 A. It's a continuous cycle, so if 11 I work on the 44th floor, that was the deck 12 floor, and then the guys were stripping the 13 43rd floor. 14 Q. Before November 14, 2016, the 15 date of the accident, when was the last 16 time prior to that that you were on the 17 44th floor? 18 A. You know what, ma'am, I can't 19 even tell you that. To be precise, I don't 20 even know, because I don't I can't even 21 answer that because we work from job to 22 jobs. 23 Q. What do you mean you work from 24 job to jobs? 25 A. We don't stay at one job when
67 2 you're with a company. You work from job 3 to job, so I can't answer that, to my 4 because I really don't know. Do you 5 understand what I'm saying? 6 Q. Right. 7 A. I wasn't there. The job got 8 shut down. I came back. 9 Q. At the Queens Plaza project, 10 around November 2016, were you also working 11 at a different project at that month? 12 A. Yes, I was. 13 Q. What other project was that? 14 A. I was working over here on 15 Grand Avenue right around the corner off 16 the Manhattan Bridge. 17 Q. Was that for a building? 18 A. Yes. 19 Q. Was that for that high-rise 20 apartment building? 21 A. Yes. 22 Q. By Manhattan Bridge? 23 A. Yes. I was there for two 24 months. Then I came back. 25 Q. Which two months were you at
68 2 the Grand Avenue building? 3 A. From September to November. 4 Q. Approximately how long had you 5 been back at the Queens Plaza project prior 6 to the date of the accident? 7 A. Probably not even a few days. 8 Q. Okay. When you went down to 9 the 44th floor on the date of the accident 10 around 3 something and you saw the 11 strippers stripping, were they stripping 12 certain walls, ceilings, something else? 13 A. They was stripping the whole 14 building. You had some strippers on the 15 wall. You had some strippers on the roof. 16 Some strippers on columns. Some strippers 17 on the elevator shaft. 18 Q. When you say the roof, you're 19 talking about the ceiling of that floor, 20 right? 21 A. Yes. 22 Q. What would be the deck above? 23 A. Yes. 24 Q. Okay. You said there were 25 people stacking as well?
69 2 A. Well, at that time of the day, 3 I don't recall. It was a logical it 4 probably was too late, but it was 5 housekeeping, because they usually stack 6 when there is a crane. You understand what 7 I'm saying? The crane has to lift the load 8 up, so it was housekeeping and stripping. 9 Q. The housekeeping, was that 10 being performed by Pinnacle or someone 11 else? 12 A. Yes. 13 Q. Were you part of the 14 housekeeping crew? 15 A. Yes. Housekeeping is keeping 16 the floor clean for safety hazards. 17 Strippers is not supposed to strip until 18 the floor is completely housekept. 19 Q. Okay. Are the housekeeping 20 crew supposed to be there while the 21 strippers are working? 22 A. It's intervals. They strip. 23 We clean. They strip. We clean. 24 Q. Okay. You were performing 25 housekeeping work at the time of the
70 2 accident, you said? 3 A. Um-hum. 4 Q. What time did the accident 5 occur? 6 A. I believe it happened I 7 don't know approximately the time, but I 8 believe it was after 4 o'clock. 9 Q. Okay. You were doing 10 housekeeping in what part of the building? 11 A. I was on the 44th floor. I 12 don't know exactly the northeast side, the 13 southeast side, but I know I was towards 14 the back of the building. 15 Q. That's the back of the building 16 towards where the trains are? 17 A. The train tracks. 18 Q. Right. Is there anything in 19 the back of the building like hoists or 20 something? 21 A. Yes. You could see the hoist. 22 Q. Okay. Where were you in 23 relation to the hoist at the time of the 24 accident? 25 A. I will say I don't really
71 2 know, to be exactly, but maybe the room 3 next door to it, a section next door to it. 4 Q. Do you know the dimensions of 5 the floor? 6 A. No. No, ma'am. 7 Q. Okay. Were you facing the back 8 of the building by the train tracks, the 9 front of the building by Jackson or 10 something else at the time of the accident? 11 A. I was more towards I don't 12 know to be precise, but towards the back. 13 Q. You were facing the back? 14 A. Yes. The back. 15 Q. Were you closer to the back of 16 the building? 17 A. Yes. 18 Q. Approximately how many feet 19 from the back of the building were you? 20 A. Towards the edge of the 21 building. I don't I was more center in 22 that back room but towards the edge, yes. 23 I was maybe like maybe 10 I don't 24 know. Maybe 10. I don't 25 Q. Approximately?
72 2 A. 10, 6 feet from the edge. 3 Q. Approximately 6 to 10 feet 4 A. Yes. 5 Q. away from the edge of the 6 back of the building? 7 A. I don't know if it was the 8 back, but I was by the edge. Maybe to the 9 edge to the other building. I don't think 10 I was to the edge by the train tracks. The 11 back, back, completely back. 12 Q. Was there another edge that 13 you're talking about? 14 A. Yes, because the walls don't 15 have the building don't have walls, so 16 there is edges all around the building. 17 Q. Okay. Was it more towards the 18 side of the building then? 19 A. Yes. I believe. It wasn't to 20 the back. 21 Q. Okay. 22 A. I'm not 100 percent certain 23 though. 24 Q. Okay. What housekeeping were 25 you doing?
73 2 A. I was picking up debris from 3 what the carpenters left. 4 Q. What did that consist of? 5 A. Lumber, axe-cut lumber, nails, 6 bars, pipes, trash, extra wood, extra 7 columns. It was a lot of trash because the 8 building, we was on the last floor, so we 9 was cleaning up. We was throwing away 10 trash, make an egress way so we can walk so 11 we can work safe. 12 Q. What fell? What object fell? 13 A. What broke my foot was a 14 reshore. 15 Q. Is that what fell or something 16 else? 17 A. What I believe caused the 18 reshore to fall was a stringer. 19 Q. Okay. So explain to me what 20 you saw right before the accident happened. 21 A. A worker was stripping. 22 Q. Okay. 23 A. He put one piece of wood down. 24 I was on the other side. The wood is about 25 maybe 16 to 20 feet long. When his side (631) 839-6153 www-reynoldsreporting.com
74 2 fell, the other side came loose of the 3 pressure and the height, it was a high 4 floor. The floor was about 12 feet tall, 5 so no, I'm lying. The floor was about 6 maybe 24 feet because the double floor. It 7 was a high floor. So from when the 8 stringer fell, it came down, put pressure 9 on the jack and spit the jack at me. 10 Q. Okay. 11 A. Because I was in a pile of 12 trash, cleaning up. I couldn't move. The 13 jack hit my foot. 14 MS. KALLFA: Can you read that 15 back for me, please. 16 (Record read) 17 Q. Okay. You mentioned a 16 to 18 20-feet piece of wood. 19 A. Um-hum. 20 Q. Then you also mentioned a 21 stringer? 22 A. Yes. Stringer, the 23 construction term of the wood after they 24 what they are using it for. 25 Q, That piece of wood that you
75 2 mentioned, that 16 to 20 feet, that's a 3 stringer? 4 A. Yes, ma'am. 5 Q. Okay. What is that connected 6 to, the stringer? What was that connected 7 to at the time of the accident? 8 A. Ma'am, I don't want to lie. 9 I'm not a carpenter. I can't I don't 10 want to incriminate I can't tell you 11 something I don't know. I just know it. 12 fell down and it hit my foot. That's it. 13 Q. I'm not asking you to 14 incriminate yourself or give me carpenter 15 testimony. I'm just asking you what you 16 saw. So you saw the stringer, right? 17 A. What I seen was a piece of wood 18 fall down. 19 Q. Right. 20 A. It hit the jack. The jack came 21 tumbling to me because I was in the middle 22 of the pile, not too far from the edge of 23 the building. 24 Q. That's fine. 25 A. It hit my foot, and plain and
76 2 simple, the result, I broke two bones in my 3 foot. 4 Q. That's fine. I'm just trying 5 to understand what you saw, what the 6 location looked like, all right? 7 Did you see the piece of wood 8 prior to it falling, the stringer? 9 A. Ma'am, I was bending over, 10 cleaning, performing my duty. I heard a 11 commotion, like a metal, something fall 12 down, coming out. I tried to get out the 13 way. I couldn't move because I was stuck 14 in trash, and the object came down and 15 crushed my foot. 16 Q. Okay- 17 A. I don't know why it fell. I 18 don't know how it fell. It fell, and the 19 end result, my foot was broke. That's all 20 I remember. 21 Q. The stringer that came loose, 22 what part of it came loose first? 23 A. I can't tell you that, ma'am. 24 I don't know. 25 Q. Okay. The worker that was
77 2 doing the stripping work, how far away from 3 you was he? 4 A. Once again, ma'am, I can't I 5 don't know. 6 Q. Approximately? 7 A. I don't know. 8 Q. Was he in front of you, to your 9 left, to your side, behind you, something 10 else? 11 A. I don't know. 12 Q. You don't know? 13 A. I don't know. 14 Q. Or you don't 15 A. I don't remember. I don't 16 know. 17 Q. Okay. Was it one worker or 18 more than one worker doing the stripping 19 work? 20 MR. LOCKHART: Can we go off 21 the record for a second? 22 MS. KALLFA: Sure. 23 THE VIDEOGRAPHER: The time is 24 1:04 p.m. We're off the record. 25 (Recess taken)
78 2 THE VIDEOGRAPHER: This marks 3 the beginning of tape number 2. The 4 time right now is 1:08 p.m. We're 5 back on the record. 6 MS. KALLFA: Repeat the last 7 question, please. 8 (Record read) 9 BY MS. KALLFA: 10 A. It was a lot of people on the 11 floor. That's all I can just tell you. 12 Q. Right, but near the stripping 13 work 14 A. When we came down from the 15 concrete, there was a commotion. I was 16 assigned to my area. I didn't say hello. 17 I didn't say hi. I didn't make eye contact 18 that much with people. I just went to my 19 job and started working. 20 Q. After the accident occurred, 21 did you look to see where the reshore jack 22 came from? 23 A. The reshore jack was not too 24 far from in front of me. 25 Q. How far away from you was it
79 2 when it had been set up? 3 A. They are tall. 4 Q. How high are they? 5 A. I don't know. 6 Q. Approximately? 7 A. Like 20 feet. 8 Q. Are they extendable? 9 A. Yes. 10 Q. They have an extension, right? 11 A. Yes.. 12 Q. Okay. The part that made 13 contact with your foot, was that the 14 extension part of the reshore jack? 15 A. Yes- 16 Q. The extension part of the 17 reshore jack, that's thinner than the 18 bottom of the jack, right? 19 A. No. It's a broad they're 20 square on top and bottom. 21 Q. Okay. What portion of the 22 reshore jack made contact with your foot? 23 A. The top. 24 Q. Okay. What is that made out 25 of?
80 2 A. Metal. 3 Q. The broad part, the top, is 4 that connected to the reshore jack? 5 A. Yes, ma'am. 6.Q. How is that connected to the 7 reshore jack? 8 A. It's welded on. 9 Q. Was the reshore jack prior to 10 your accident connected to the ceiling and 11 the floor? 12 A. I don't know. 13 Q. Generally how are the reshore 14 jacks connected to the floor? 15 A. They stand up. 16 Q. Have you ever seen them 17 connected to the floor? 18 A. Yes. 19 Q. Do you have to use any nails or 20 rods or anything to connect them to the 21 floor? 22 A. I don't want to say nails or 23 rods because each jack is different. 24 Q. Okay. The jack that was 25 involved in your accident, do you know how
81 2 that was connected to the floor and the 3 ceiling prior to the accident? 4 A. No, ma'am. 5 Q. Do you know if they connect to 6 the floor and the ceiling through simple 7 tension? Are they like tension rods? 8 A. In some cases they can be 9 designed like that. I don't know. 10 Q. Okay. You don't know if the 11 one that was involved in your accident 12 was 13 A. No, because I couldn't see the 14 bottom. There was trash on the floor. 15 Q. When you looked up did you see 16 one or more worker near the reshore jack 17 that had fallen? 18 A. There was no worker where I 19 broke my foot at. 20 Q. There was no worker performing 21 stripping work in that area? 22 A. Right. You're talking about in 23 my vicinity? In my area where I was at? 24 Q. Yes. 25 A. It was just me. I didn't look
82 2 up. I didn't see anything. I didn't see 3 nobody behind me. Nobody came to my 4 rescue. The jack hit me. I hit the 5 ground. I screamed for help. 6 Q. How about in the vicinity of 7 where the reshore jack came from, was there 8 someone doing stripping work in that area? 9 A. I don't know, ma'am. 10 Q. Okay. Do you know why the jack 11 fell? 12 A. No. 13 Q. You said in your work area 14 there were no workers in your near 15 vicinity, right? 16 A. Not close by me. 17 Q. How far away was the closest 18 worker to you? 19 A. I don't know. 20 Q. Approximately? 21 A. I don't know. I don't know. 22 Q. Did anyone come and assist you 23 after? 24 A. When I screamed, people came 25 back there. I fell, took my boot off.
83 2 Then they came. A few guys came over. One 3 guy came and helped me to the floor of the 4 hoist. That's pretty much all I remember. 5 Q. Okay. Earlier you mentioned 6 someone performing stripping work and a 7 stringer. Was that anywhere near the 8 accident location? 9 A. That's in the same floor. 10 Q. Right, but was that involved in 11 your accident at some point or no? 12 A. The guy was. stripping. I was 13 working. There was guys in there working. 14 I was working in the area. Something came 15 down. It made like a commotion. And then 16 I realized the jack was coming at me. 17 Q. Okay. The worker that you said 18 was performing the stripping work, and you 19 mentioned the stringer, was that worker 20 anywhere near the reshore jack that fell? 21 A. No. 22 Q. Okay. 23 A. No. 24 Q. There were no workers near the 25 reshore jack that fell that were working
84 2 with the reshore jack at the time of the 3 accident, correct? 4 A. There was no one working with 5 the reshore jack, no. 6 Q. There was no one loosening that 7 reshore jack? 8 A. No. 9 Q. There was no one performing 10 stripping work? 11 A. There were strippers in the. 12 area, yes. 13 Q. But next to that reshore jack? 14 A. Not with that reshore jack. 15 Q. Okay. When the reshore jack is 16 loosened does the reshore jack extension go 17 inside the jack? 18 A. Yes. 19 Q. Did that happen here? 20 A. It tipped over. 21 Q. So it didn't retract inside 22 itself? 23 A. No. I don't remember. I 24 remember it falling like that. 25 Q. Okay. So straight towards you
85 2 basically? 3 A. Yes. 4 Q. Okay. Did you see the reshore 5 jack falling towards you? 6 A. At some point, ma'am. 7 Q. When? Where was it in relation 8 to you when you first saw it? 9 A. Coming towards me. 10 Q. Yes. 11 A. Coming towards me. 12 Q. Where was it in relation to 13 your body? 14 A. In front of me. 15 Q. Approximately how far away 16 from 17 A. I don't know. I don't know the 18 distance. 19 Q. Was it near your chest area? 20 A. As far as height-wise? 21 Q. Yes. 22 A. It's taller than me. 23 Q. No, I understand, but it was 24 falling towards you, correct? 25 A. Yes. It was falling towards
86 2 me. 3 Q. When you first saw it, was it 4 above your head, next to your chest, 5 something else? 6 A. When I first saw it falling, 7 tipping towards me, it was almost about to 8 hit me when I noticed it. 9 Q. About to hit you where? 10 A. Like my leg area. 11 Q. Okay. 12 A. Like lower torso area. 13 Q. Did you make any attempts to 14 grab the reshore jack? 15 A. No. I tried to get out of the 16 way. 17 Q. Okay. How did you try to get 18 out of the way? 19 A. I tried to shuffle. 20 Q. Which way? 21 A. Basically hop. 22 Q. Which way? 23 A. Hop, like shuffle, hop. 24 Q. Oh, in place? 25 A. Yes.
87 2 Q. Okay. 3 A. Because there was really 4 nowhere for me to go. 5 Q. Then the reshore jack made 6 contact with what part of your body? 7 A. My left foot. 8 Q. You said there was nowhere to 9 go. Why is that? 10 A. Because the floor was a mess. 11 I was doing housekeeping and 12 Q. What was on the floor around 13 you? 14 A. Debris. 15 Q. What kind of debris? 16 A. Excessive lumber, strip 17 concrete. Stuff in that nature. Nails, 18 rods. 19 Q. Could you have walked on top of 20 the debris? 21 A. You mean climb over it? 22 Q. Yes. 23 A. Yes. 24 Q. Why didn't you? 25 A. What do you mean? Climb over (631) 839-6153 www.reynoldsreporting-com
88 2 debris after the thing hit me? 3 Q. How high was the debris? 4 A. Debris is high. It's junk. 5 Like some of the stuff is 3 feet. I'm like 6 2 feet. There is piles of trash. 7 Q. Were you surrounded by 8 A. Yes. 9 Q. debris all around? 10 A. The majority. I had to climb 11 into the debris to get where I was going.. 12 Q. In front of you there was 13 3 feet of debris? 14 A. It was debris all around me. 15 Q. How about to your right, was 16 there 3 17 A. There was debris all around me, 18 ma'am. Trash all I was in the middle of 19 the trash pile, okay? Get it in your head, 20 3 all around me. I couldn't jump over 21 nothing. 22 Q. Was there a pile of debris in 23 front of you? 24 A. Yes, ma'am. 25 Q. Approximately how high?
89 2 A. I don't know how high. There 3 was debris all over the floor. 4 Q. Did the pile of debris in front 5 of you stop or impact the reshore jack that 6 was tipping over at all? 7 A. No. If it didn't end result, 8 my foot wouldn't have been broken. 9 Q. The reshore jack didn't make 10 contact with the pile of debris that was 11 A. No. It made contact with my 12 foot. 13 Q. Right, but was the reshore jack 14 outside the pile of debris? 15 A. I don't know, ma'am. 16 Q. How did you get inside that 17 pile of debris? 18 A. I had to trek into it. That's 19 how much trash there was. I had to climb, 20 kick stuff around. There was trash. 21 Q. Did the reshore jack make 22 contact with anything else before making 23 contact with your left foot? 24 A. Ma'am, I don't know. 25 Q. What part of your left foot did
90 2 the reshore jack make contact with? 3 A. The bridge of my foot. 4 Q. So your toe area or something 5 else? 6 A. The bridge, like the tarsal. 7 Q. Okay. Had you ever removed any 8 reshore jacks at this project? 9 A. No, ma'am. 10 Q. Had you ever loosened any 11 reshore jacks at this project? 12 A. No, ma'am. 13 Q. Were you using any tools at the 14 time of the accident? 15 A. No, ma'am. 16 Q. Were you using anything to 17 clean the debris at the time of the 18 accident? 19 A. No, ma'am. 20 Q. How were you cleaning the 21 debris? 22 A. With my hands. 23 Q. Were you placing it anywhere? 24 A. Just throwing it into the 25 dumpsters and to wheelbarrows and trying to
91 2 hand them passing them out and throwing 3 them into the barrels. 4 Q. At the time of the accident? 5 A. Not at the time of the 6 accident. At the time of the accident we 7 was trying to clean the floor to make a 8 path. 9 Q. Okay. 10 A. A safe work environment. 11 Q. When you were moving the debris 12 with your hands at the time of the 13 accident, where were you placing that 14 debris? 15 A. I guess we was throwing it, at 16 the time I probably was throwing it in a 17 corner. 18 Q. Do you know who installed the 19 reshore jack that was involved in your 20 accident? 21 A. No, but I'm assuming 22 carpenters. 23 Q. Is that done by 24 A. Carpenters. 25 Q. Installed by carpenters or by (631) 839-6153 www.reynoldsreporting-com
92 2 strippers? 3 A. By carpenters. 4 Q. Okay. Do you know if the 5 carpenters were employed by Pinnacle at 6 this project? 7 A. I would assume they are. 8 Q. Who removes the reshore jacks? 9 A. Usually the carpenters or the 10 strippers. 11 Q. The strippers are concrete 12 workers? 13 A. Yes. 14 Q. Okay. Besides the reshore 15 jack, did anything else fall at the time of 16 the accident? 17 A. I don't know. 18 Q. Do you know the diameter of the 19 reshore jack? 20 A. No. 21 Q. Do you know what the purpose of 22 the reshore jack was? 23 A. Secure heavy weight. 24 Q. To secure the ceiling, right? 25 The forms?
93 2 A. Heavy weight, yes. 3 Q. So that the concrete could form 4 on the floor above, right? 5 A. Yes. 6 Q. Could the forms be held up 7 without that reshore jack? 8 A. I don't think so, no. I don't 9 know. 10 Q. Do you know what the reshore 11 jack is made out of? 12 A. Metal. 13 Q. Do you know what kind of metal? 14 A. No, ma'am. 15 Q. Do you know how much the 16 reshore jack that was involved in your 17 accident weighs? 18 A. I don't know exactly it's 19 weight. 20 Q. Do you know approximately how 21 much it weighs? 22 A. No. 23 Q. Did anyone witness your 24 accident? 25 A. I don't know. It should be
94 2 people was on the floor. I assume, yes. 3 Q. But that you're aware of. 4 A. Yes. 5 Q. Who witnessed your accident? 6 A. I think it was Junior and Leo. 7 Q. Who is Junior? 8 A. A concrete worker. 9 Q. Do you know his last name? 10 A. No. 11 Q. Do you know him outside of 12 work? 13 A. No. 14 Q. Did you speak to him about what 15 he saw? 16 A. No. 17 Q. How do you know he witnessed 18 the accident? 19 A. I believe he was on the floor 20 at the time when we was working. 21 Q. Did he assist you after the 22 accident? 23 A. No. 24 Q. Did you ever speak to him about 25 the accident afterwards?
95 2 A. No. I haven't seen Junior ever 3 since, no. 4 Q. You said Leo also witnessed the 5 accident? 6 A. Leo helped me get to the 38th 7 floor. 8 Q. Who is Leo? 9 A. A worker. 10 Q. Is he a concrete worker as 11 well? 12 A. Yes. 13 Q. How do you know him? Just from 14 work? 15 A. From work. 16 Q. How did he help you get to the 17 38th floor? 18 A. He helped me. Basically he was 19 like a crutch. 20 Q. He helped you walk? 21 A. Yes. Basically, yes. 22 Q. Why did he take you to the 38th 23 floor? 24 A. That's where the highest floor 25 of the hoist came up to.
96 2 Q. Did he go on the hoist with 3 you? 4 A. I believe so. 5 Q. Where did you go from there? 6 A. To the street level. 7 Q. To go where? 8 A. To the infirmary. 9 Q. To the medic's office? 10 A. Yes. 11 Q. Did Leo talk to you about what 12 he saw? 13 A. I don't think Leo was in the 14 room with me at that time, in that section 15 of the building. 16 Q. When you say room, were there 17 actual walls put up? 18 A. They are like partitions. 19 Q. I'm sorry? 20 A. Yes. They are barriers. 21 Q. Barriers made out of what? 22 A. Yes. It's the elevator shaft, 23 so the elevator shaft is in the middle of 24 the building, so on one side of the 25 building you can't see on the other side of
97 2 the building because of the elevator shaft. 3 Q. Did Leo tell you if he saw 4 anything? 5 A. No. 6 Q. Did Leo ask you what happened? 7 A. I told him I broke my foot. I 8 think I broke my foot. 9 Q. Did you tell him anything else? 10 A. No. 11 Q. Do you know Leo's last name? 12 A. I don't know it. 13 Q. Have you spoken to him since 14 the date of the accident? 15 A. I think I seen him when I went 16 back to the job. 17 Q. When did you go back to the 18 job? 19 A. Maybe a week later to get my 20 check. 21 Q. Did you talk to him about the 22 accident at that time? 23 A. He just asked me. We said hi, 24 bye, and that's it. How is everything 25 working out.
98 2 Q. Do you possess any photographs 3 of the accident location? 4 A. Me personally? 5 Q. Yes. 6 A. No. 7 Q. Are you aware of any 8 photographs of the accident location? 9 A. No. 10 Q. Do you possess any photographs 11 of your injuries from this accident? 12 A. No. 13 Q. Okay. 14 (Plaintiff's Exhibits A through 15 E, Photographs, were so marked for 16 identification, as of this date.) 17 Q. Can you take a minute to look 18 at the photographs before you that is 19 marked as Plaintiff's Exhibits A through E. 20 Ready? 21 A. Um-hum. 22 Q. Okay. Let's turn to Exhibit A. 23 Have you ever seen that photograph before 24 today? 25 A. No.
99 2 Q. Do you know who took that 3 photograph? 4 A. No. 5 Q. Do you know what that 6 photograph depicts? 7 A. A rough pour. A finished pour. 8 Q. Do you know if the photograph 9 shows the 44th floor of the Queens Plaza 10 project? 11 A. No. I don't know. 12 Q. Okay. You can't tell from 13 looking at the photograph? 14 A. No, I can't. 15 Q. Okay. Let's turn to Exhibit B. 16 Have you ever seen that photograph before 17 right now? 18 A. No. 19 Q. Do you know who took that 20 photograph? 21 A. No. 22 Q. Do you know what's shown in the 23 photograph? 24 A. A finished floor- 25 Q. Okay. Do you know if that is Reynolds' Reporting, Inc.
100 2 the 44th floor of the Queens Plaza project? 3 A. No. 4 Q. You don't know? You can't 5 tell? 6 A. I can't tell. 7 Q. Okay. 8 MR. LOCKHART: When were these 9 photographs taken? 10 MS. KALLFA: They are 11 post-accident photographs. 12 MR. LOCKHART: In other words 13 not the day of the accident? 14 MS. KALLFA: No. 15 MR. LOCKHART: Thank you. 16 Q. Exhibit C, have you seen that 17 photograph before right now? 18 A. No. 19 Q. Do you know who took the 20 photograph? 21 A. No. 22 Q. Do you know what's shown in the 23 photograph? 24 A. A finished floor. 25 Q. Do you know if that's the 44th
101 2 floor of the Queens Plaza project? 3 A. I don't know. 4 Q. How about Exhibit D, have you 5 seen that photograph before right now? 6 A. No. 7 Q. Do you know who took the 8 photograph? 9 A. No. 10 Q. Do you know what the photograph 11 shows? 12 A. A finished floor. 13 Q. Do you know if that's the 44th 14 floor of the Queens Plaza project? 15 A. No. 16 Q. How about Exhibit E, have you 17 seen that photograph before today? 18 A. No. 19 Q. Do you know who took the 20 photograph? 21 A. No. 22 Q. Do you know what's shown in the 23 photograph? 24 A. A finished floor. 25 Q. Do you know if that's the 44th (631) 839-6153 www.reynoldsreporting-com
102 2 floor of the Queens Plaza project? 3 A. No. 4 Q. Any of the photographs shown to 5 you marked as Plaintiff's Exhibits A 6 through E, do any of them depict the 7 accident location on the date of the 8 accident? 9 A. All the floors are the same. 10 Q. I'm just asking you based on 11 the photographs. 12 A. No. I don't know. 13 Q. The area that you were working 14 on, do any of those photographs show that 15 area? 16 A. I can't tell. I don't know. 17 Q. Do any of those photographs 18 show what the 44th floor looked like on the 19 date of the accident? 20 A. No. 21 Q. No? Okay. Thank you. 22 MR. LOCKHART: I assume we'll 23 get copies of all the exhibits today. 24 MS. KALLFA: You can make the 25 copies before I leave. Not right (631) 839-6153 www-reynoldsreporting.com
103 2 now. Let's finish. 3 MR. LOCKHART: We'll wait until 4 the end. I don't know how many there 5 are going to be. 6 MS. KALLFA: Yes. We're not 7 done yet. 8 Q. The jack that was involved in 9 your accident, immediately prior to the 10 accident the jack was just standing, right, 11 connected to the floor and the ceiling? 12 A. I don't know, ma'am. 13 Q. Was the jack being hoisted 14 right before the accident? 15 A. I don't know what you mean 16 by no. I don't know. 17 Q. I mean hoisted. 18 A. Was it erect? Erected? 19 Q. Was it erect? 20 A. I would assume. It came 21 down 22 MR. LOCKHART: You're asking if 23 it's hoisted. Hoisted means 24 MR. JASPER: Don't guess. 25 MR. LOCKHART: raised by (631) 839-6153 www-reynoldsreporting.com
104 2 something else. 3 MS. KALLFA: Right. 4 A. No. It wasn't hoisted. 5 Q. Okay. The jack was erect, 6 right, right before the accident? 7 A. I don't know. 8 Q. Did you see it? 9 MR. JASPER: Objection. He 10 said he didn't know, so what are you 11 asking him for if he didn't see it? 12 Q. Prior to starting work in that 13 location, did you see that jack erect? 14 A. The room I was working in, the 15 area I was working, I can't say it was a 16 room because there was a partition in the 17 area I was working in, it was a rough 18 construction floor. 19 When I mean rough construction 20 floor, there is trash, jacks and unstripped 21 material, so it was many a jacks on the 22 floor. Am I saying that that jack, I don't 23 know, was that jack that hit me erected or 24 was it by me, but there were many jacks on 25 the floor. There had to be about 200 jacks
105 2 in that floor. 3 Q. The jacks that were on the 4 floor, were those erect or were they laying 5 down on the floor? 6 A. The jacks that was on the 7 floor? 8 Q. Yes. 9 A. What jacks that was on the 10 floor? 11 Q. You said that there were many 12 jacks on the floor, correct? 13 A. Meaning that they are erect. 14 Q. They are all erect? 15 A. They are erect. 16 Q. Okay. 17 A. They are erect. Erect on the 18 ground. They are all over the place. 19 Q. What do you mean by on the 20 ground? 21 A. There is some that was not 22 being erect. There was trash. 23 MR. JASPER: Counselor, please 24 don't paraphrase his answer. 25 MS. KALLFA: No. I just need
106 2 to understand what the answer is. 3 MR. JASPER: He said they were 4 all over. 5 MS. KALLFA: No. All over is 6 not an answer to the question, so I'm 7 going to ask specifically what he 8 saw. 9 MR. JASPER: So ask him 10 specifically. 11 MS. KALLFA: I will.. 12 Q. When you say all over the 13 floor, do you mean that the jacks are 14 connected to the floor and the ceiling or 15 that the jacks are laying down horizontally 16 on the floor? 17 MR. JASPER: Objection. He 18 doesn't say anything is connected. 19 MS. KALLFA: Okay. 20 MR. JASPER: So please 21 paraphrase his 22 MS. KALLFA: Sure. 23 MR. JASPER: answer 24 correctly for the record. 25 Q. What do you mean by the jacks
107 2 were erected? 3 A. They were upright, and some was 4 on the floor. Some were in piles. They 5 were all over. 6 Q. Okay. The jacks that are 7 upright, are those jacks connected to 8 something? 9 MR. JASPER: Objection. You 10 don't have to paraphrase his answer 11 again for him. 12 MS. KALLFA: I need to 13 understand what he's 14 MR. JASPER: Asked and 15 answered. 16 MS. KALLFA: First of all, 17 which one of you is conducting this 18 deposition? Because only one of you 19 can be speaking on the record. 20 MR. LOCKHART: Okay. I will. 21 MS. KALLFA: Okay. 22 MR. LOCKHART: You've asked the 23 same question four times. 24 MS. KALLFA: I haven't. 25 MR. LOCKHART: You certainly (631) 839-6153 www-reynoldsreporting.com
108 2 have. 3 MS. KALLFA: Okay. 4 MR. JASPER: Then have the 5 reporter read it back now, so the 6 judge can see it. 7 MS. KALLFA: First of all, 8 again, Counselor, only one of you can 9 be present for this deposition. 10 MR. LOCKHART: I'm sitting in 11 for the deposition. 12 MS. KALLEA: Okay. 13 MR. LOCKHART: I've sat here 14 very quietly for over two hours. I 15 haven't said a word. 16 MS, KALLFA: Right. 17 MR. LOCKHART: Okay? You've 18 asked a total number of irrelevant 19 questions. Now you're finally down 20 to the happening of the accident. 21 That's fine, okay? 22 You've asked the same question 23 four times, all right? He's giving 24 you his answer. 25 MS. KALLFA: The answer
109 2 MR. LOCKHART: That should be 3 sufficient. 4 MS. KALLFA: The answer is 5 unclear, so therefore 6 MS. JASPER: Well 7 MR. LOCKHART: Well, it may be 8 unclear to you. It's very clear to 9 me. 10 MS. KALLFA: Stop. I will 11 not 12 MR. LOCKHART: Harvey, stay out 13 of it. 14 MS. KALLFA: have both of 15 you speaking on the record. I will 16 be calling the judge if he speaks one 17 more time. So again, I am allowed 18 MR. LOCKHART: Don't threaten 19 me with the judge. 20 MS. KALLFA: I'm not 21 threatening anything. 22 MR. LOCKHART: Okay? All 23 right? 24 MS. KALLFA: I know the court 25. rules, and we all know them, correct?
110 2 MR. LOCKHART: I know the court 3 rules. 4 MS. KALLFA: Okay. 5 MR. LOCKHART: And if you have 6 an objection, you can go down on 7 papers in front of a judge and we'll 8 do it that way. Don't threaten me to 9 make a phone call from here. 10 MS. KALLFA: I'm allowed 11 MR. LOCKHART: Now let me 12 finish my 13 MS. KALLFA: Go ahead. 14 MR. LOCKHART: objection, 15 okay? 16 MS. KALLFA: Go ahead. 17 MR. LOCKHART: You may not 18 understand, but it's quite clear. 19 Some jacks are up. Some jacks are 20 down. 21 MS. KALLFA: No. 22 MR. LOCKHART: Just bear with 23 me, okay? 24 MS. KALLFA: Okay. 25 MR. LOCKHART: Ask him about