A Michigan masonry company has been criminally charged in the death of a journeyman who fell from scaffolding while working on a University of Michigan construction project.

In a felony criminal complaint filed in Washtenaw County District Court, the Michigan Attorney General's Office charged Holt-based Davenport Masonry with violating the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Act, causing the death of an employee. 

According to the complaint, filed in April, the company failed to create hazard-free work place, which caused the February 2008 death of Leo Felty, Jr.

Felty died in February 2008 after falling 40 feet from scaffolding while working on the $42 million U-M Museum of Art addition. The Pinckney man stepped backward off an unguarded end of the scaffolding and died on impact, according to the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation report.

In court documents, lawyers for Davenport deny the company is criminally liable for Felty's death.

Leo Felty Jr., 32, fell 40 feet from scaffolding in February 2008 while working on a new wing for the University of Michigan Museum of Art. 

Michigan Occupational Health and Safety Administration | Investigation photo

"His death was a tragic accident that was not caused by any willful misconduct of any kind by Davenport," the documents state.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 17.

Davenport Masonry is again doing work for U-M, this time on the $175 million North Quad residential and academic complex at 105 S. State St. under general contractor Walbridge Aldinger.

SKANSKA, an international company that managed the museum project, hired the masonry company on the museum addition. SKANSKA was not issued MIOSHA citations, but the Felty family has sued SKANSKA for damages in Washtenaw County Circuit Court. The family claims in the lawsuit the general contractor failed to ensure and enforce safety standards.

Felty was one of three workers who died on U-M construction jobs over a 16-month period. In August 2008, elevator mechanic David Jeffrey Smith, 31, died after falling down an elevator shaft from the fifth floor at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. Gary Winisky, 48, died in June 2009 while working on the U-M C.S. Mott Children's & Women's Hospital replacement project after being struck by roofing materials that fell from a crane.

Since the accidents, U-M has announced new safety requirements for outside construction contractors, including the addition of project-specific safety plans.

U-M spokesman Rick Fitzgerald said it wouldn't be appropriate for U-M to comment on the criminal charges.

Around the state, there are two other pending MIOSHA death cases; neither are affiliated with U-M construction projects, said Joy Yearout, a spokeswoman for the attorney general.

"They're not routine cases, in that it doesn't happen every day," Yearout said. "These cases are filed in a situation where it's a work-related death, attributable to the company's failure to adhere to state safety regulations."

"In most cases, the company has been previously cited for similar safety regulation lapses, or we have other evidence that demonstrates the company should have known that employees were not following safety regulations."

The courts could fine the company and also order it to pay restitution to any party that suffered a loss, Yearout said.

Juliana Keeping covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at julianakeeping@annarbor.com or 734-623-2528. Follow Juliana Keeping on Twitter