Travis County Grand Jury Indicts Construction Company and Superintendent in Fatal Trench Collapse

On November 14, 2024, Travis County District Attorney José Garza announced that a Travis County grand jury had indicted D Guerra Construction LLC and its Project Superintendent, Carlos Alejandro Guerrero, 37, for Criminal Negligent Homicide, following a fatal trench collapse in October 2021.

On October 23, 2021, D Guerra Construction employees were installing a wastewater line in a residential subdivision in southern Travis County when a trench collapsed. The collapse completely buried 24-year-old worker Juan José Galvan Batalla, who succumbed to his injuries on October 30, 2021.

The case was referred to the Travis County District Attorney’s office in June 2022 after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found multiple workplace violations and cited the company.

“Employers must prioritize the safety of their workers,” District Attorney Garza stated. “We will hold those accountable who expose their employees to dangerous conditions, as this tragic loss was preventable.”

OSHA’s Regional Administrator, Eric Harbin, emphasized that despite a partial trench collapse earlier in the day, D Guerra Construction recklessly sent employees back into the excavation without necessary protective measures.

This case marks the first indictment of a corporate entity for unsafe working conditions under the current administration. The prosecution is being handled by the District Attorney’s Office’s Economic Justice Enforcement Initiative. The case against D Guerra Construction LLC is being heard in the 167th Judicial Court, while the case against Mr. Guerrero is in the 299th Judicial Court for Travis County.