Engineer in fatal 2012 Radiohead stage collapse in Toronto guilty of professional misconduct

An engineer who signed off on a Radiohead concert stage that collapsed and killed a drum technician in Toronto eight years ago has been found guilty of professional misconduct, but the findingsand the engineer's acceptance of them come too late to provide justice, according to the band and the family of the man who died.

Domenic Cugliari agreed last week to conclusions reached by thediscipline committee of the Professional EngineersOntarioin theJune 16, 2012 incident that killed Scott Johnson.

Johnson, 33, was tuning a drum kit for the band before aconcert at Toronto's Downsview Park when the massive outdoor stage structure collapsed on him.Three others were injured.

Last week, the discipline committee found Cugliari had notnoticed numerous errors and omissions in design drawings for the stage and consequently failed to revise the plans.

It also found Cugliari did not examine trusses holding heavylighting equipment and failed to realize those trusses were incorrectly connected to other beams.

Waitfor accountability has taken toll: victim's father

Johnson's father said the drawn-out process of seekingaccountability in their son's death which has included a court case and an inquest has taken a toll.

"Not knowing the outcome for eight years does destroy you," an emotional Ken Johnson said in a phone interview from his home in Doncaster, England.

The elder Johnson noted that Cugliari's agreement with thediscipline committee's findings could have helped bring justice had it come earlier.

A court case fell apart after the matter took too long to get to trial. As a result, occupational health and safety charges were stayed against Cugliari, as well as the show's promoter Live Nation and contractor Optex Staging.

"If this had been said on day one of the court case, theywouldn't have gotten away with ... getting the case thrown out because it was going on too long," Johnsonsaid.

A coroner's inquest into Johnson's death heardlast year that plans for the stage were riddled with mistakes, the wrong building components were used in key areasand the construction was running behind schedule.

Cugliari testified at the inquest that he did not check to see ifthe correct parts were used because he trusted the contractor.

The criteria of the inquest was not to lay blame, and a jury returned with a slew of recommendations designed to prevent future deaths.

Engineer apologizes

The Professional EngineersOntariodiscipline committee found that Cugliari signed off on a "field review report" sent to the contractor that said the stage was "structurally sound."

At the committee hearing, Cugliari said he was sorry for what happened.

"At this time, I would like to sincerely apologize to theJohnson family, to the families of the other injured workers, as well as to the engineering profession," he said, according to his lawyer, Scott Thompson.

"I regret having issued the field review report stating that thestage was structurally sound and satisfactory for its intended use without thoroughly ensuring that the proper pick-up trusses had been installed. For that I am truly sorry."

Ken Johnson said the apology has little meaning.

"We do not know what pain he was in or for how long," he said of his son. "We were not there to help him, how sad."

'Admissions are 8years too late,' Radiohead says

Radiohead also said Cugliari's words fell short.

"These admissions are eight years too late," the band wrote on social media.

"If the evidence now accepted by Mr. Cugliari had been agreed atthe original court case brought against him, Live Nation and the contractor Optex Staging, it would have been complete in one day, with a very different outcome and some justice would have beendelivered."

Last year, at the outset of the disciplinary committee proceedings, Cugliari had tried to get out of the proceedings, filing a motion saying Professional EngineersOntariohad nojurisdiction because he had retired. The committee dismissed the motion.

Cugliari had his engineering licence revoked as a result of thecommitee's findings, and his company, Construction Control Inc., which declared bankruptcy in 2018, lost its licence.

Should thecompany wish to apply for a certificate with the association, it would have to pay a $5,000 fine.

Johnson said he couldn't believe the only penalty that ultimately resulted from the collapse that killed his son was the revocation of a licence from a retired engineer. He said he and his wife are left with justmemories of their only child and sad trips to the cemetery.

"They say that time is a healer," Johnson said through tears.

"If anyone wants to make that statement, they should come along to the graveyard and have a chat with him. It doesn't get better, it really does not. It's a rotten, awful, awful situation."