Electrical Specialist: Electrical Codes, Electrical Investigations, Inspections and Expert Witness

Expertise

• Forensic electrical contractor and consultant providing electrical inspections, electrical investigations, fact-finding reports, visual exhibits, depositions, expert court and trial testimony for electrically caused damage, injury, and/or death.
• Types and classes of electrically caused accidents.
• Site inspections, investigations, and code compliance, working in the electrical construction and maintenance industry.

Electrical Specialties

• National electrical code compliance.
• National electrical safety code compliance.
• California high voltage electrical safety orders.
• Grounding and bonding of electrical systems
• High voltage utilities-electrical line contact.
• Bucket truck high voltage contact.
• Electrical power plant wiring and electrical compliance.
• ANSI Standards - American National Standards Institute.
• UL - Underwriters Laboratories Standards
• NEMA standards, National Electrical Manufactures Association.
• OSHA - Electrical standards-and lockout/ tagout of hazardous energy.
• Electrical Grounding Requirements.
• National electrical code requirements.
• National electrical safety code requirements.
• ANSI Standards.
• Electrical product standards.

Expert Witness Experience

Fact finding reports, winning numerous cases outside of court.

• Accident site inspections and investigations.
• Reviewed depositions, review opponents' depositions; provide depositions and trial testimony.
• Visual exhibits.
• Failure analysis.
• Electrical patent infringement.

Cases - Expert Court Witness, 1988 - Present

• Personal injury case involving a metal ladder resulting in electrocution.
• Electrical wiring not to national electrical code standards representing a power plant company.
• At a railcar factory, grounding and bonding of raw metal car, lack of ground wire for safety resulting in fatal electrocution.
• Personal injury case, involving electrical products (circuit breakers).
• On site investigation: Personal injury case, researched and reviewed ANSI codes and manufactures specifications regarding an automatic hospital door installation and operation.
• Automatic door, reviewed ANSI codes and manufactures specifications, regarding an automatic door installation at Target store, 2 site inspections, 2 reports written.
• Accidental death (Federal Case), involving improper wiring of neutrals and grounding wires, manufacturer's specifications regarding the automatic door installation and operation testimony given at deposition and trial.
• Insurance company case, house electrical fire, active case.
• National Electrical codes, involving low voltage class
• City electrical inspections, and low voltage wiring for LED Lights
• High voltage electrocution case, public utility worker and local electrician, wired around the breaker box entirely, by passing the circuit breakers.
• In Oregon, an electrical safety and compliance case, electrical permit program ,low voltage class.
• In California (PAC-Bell), electrocution case. Bucket truck contact with high voltage lines, testimony.
• Product development in Georgia: Air conditioning assembly patent, and UL certification.
• Electrical fire hotel in California-on going case.
• Development of electrical hardware, national electrical code for a major U.S. on line product supply company.
• State of California Attorney General's office, Post-secondary education complaint, involving electrical licensing.
• Provided onsite inspections, reports, testimony and depositions in; Alaska Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin.

Experience

Undisclosed Company, General Electrical Contractor, 2013 - 2018

• Sub-contracting for this class C-10 general electrical contractor and with the State of California Attorney's office, on solar, Industrial, commercial, and residential projects
• Providing expert witnessing under an active License in the State of California.

Independent Consultant, 2010 - Present

• As a licensed Electrical Contractor for a large electric contracting firm, provide expert witnessing for residential, commercial and industrial electrical work.
• Created electrical, fact finding reports, after performing site investigations, failure analysis and review of electrical specifications and codes.
• Researched and reviewed, appropriate electrical building, utility, and manufactures codes and specifications, including grounding/bonding.

Projects

• Electrical Contractor in San Francisco, California, for residential, commercial and industrial electrical work, including being an electrical expert in a court of law.
• Licensed Master Electrical Contractor, Bentonville Arkansas, for residential and commercial, and industrial electrical work, including expert consulting.
• Licensed Master Electrician Contractor, Batesville Arkansas for commercial, industrial, electrical work, including being an expert in a court of law, performing electrical accident investigations, written reports, depositions and trial testimony.
• Licensed Master Electrician Contractor, Reno Nevada, residential, commercial, and industrial, electrical work, including being an expert in a court of law, performing electrical accident investigations, written reports, depositions and trial testimony.
• Licensed Electrical Contractor, Los Gatos California, residential, commercial and industrial electrical work, including expert consulting.
• Personal injury complaint, delivery truck driver, coming into contact with a high voltage line severely injured by electrocution, researched national electrical codes, and national safety codes.
• Personal injury complaint, loss of limbs, utility worker on power line pole, researched national electrical safety codes, national electrical code, lock out tag out procedures and OSHA regulations, written report, and deposition given.
• Fire resulting in 2 deaths, developed detailed report on comparative analysis of fire destroyed wall heater, reportedly removed from point of origin, of the residential fire,
• Accidental death, researched and consultation with attorneys, electrical utility codes, national electrical safety codes, OSHA regulations, and other evidence that was provided, this was a metal extension ladder accident, involving a high voltage line in a residential backyard.
• Accidental death, researched and consulted with attorneys, national electrical safety codes, OSHA regulations, and other evidence that was provided, this accident involved a large industrial plant, the main electrical distribution panel- board exploded, and severely injured a maintenance man.
• For Pacific Gas and Electric, accidental death, researched and consultation with attorneys, California High Voltage Orders, national electrical safety codes, and OSHA requirements, for bucket truck operations near high voltage lines.
• Homeowners association complaint, researched and consultation with attorneys, national electrical codes, regarding original electrical construction on 100 condominiums, site inspections, researched and developed reports, on sub-standard electrical installations.
• Severe electrical shock case; two site inspections, researched and developed detailed report based on UL standards, and national electrical codes for hot water dispensers in remote locations. After a second site inspection was performed, it was determined, that the disconnecting of the main electrical grounding wire, was the cause of the severe electrical shock.
• Pole climbing accident, site inspection, detailed written report, reviewed California joint pole agreement, between pacific gas and electric, telephone company and cable TV company, reviewed California high voltage orders, national electrical safety codes, and OSHA requirements, deposition and trial testimony given.
• State of California Safety earthquake codes, as it applies to ceiling fixtures, in this case a lighting fixture fell from the ceiling, causing a severe injury, detailed report written and deposition given.
• Swimming pool versus a reflecting fountain: Wiring and installation of ten pool lights, were in compliance with the national electrical code standards, submitted written report and deposition given.
• Three detailed reports written of investigative failure analysis of power surges at three, mobile home parks. Found three defective main power plugs, that were improperly grounded.

Electrical Employment Experience

XNA Airport, Master Electrician, (Licensed Contractor C10 California and Arkansas), 1999 - 2010

• All phases of electrical maintenance and installation, including security systems (Licensed Contractor).
• Electrical installation and maintenance of high voltage and low voltage circuits, security systems, video surveillance and access controls.

Undisclosed Company, Owner and Licensed Master Electrician, 1994 - 1999

• Providing commercial, industrial, and residential electrical work in Arkansas, Nevada and California as a licensed contractor adhering to NEC, NEMA, OSHA, UL and utility standards, including expert consulting.
• Performing electrical accident product liability investigations for expert witnessing in the court of law.

Focused Areas

Codes - Electrical

• Building
• National electrical codes
• National electrical safety codes
• OSHA electrical codes
• Safety construction
• Safety utility warning tags - failure to warn
• Warning labels
• Electrical Power Plant Standards

Construction - Electrical

• Amusement parks
• Damage analysis
• Gas stations
• Historic building restoration
• Inspection and quality control
• Motels
• Nursing homes
• Office buildings
• Residential
• Shopping centers

Electric Shock Design - Electrical

• Blueprints and drawings
• Deviations
• Failure
• Schematics and diagrams

Fires - Electrical

• Appliances
• Hotel
• Kitchens
• Mobile homes
• Restaurant
• Static electricity fires

Industrial Equipment

• Equipment failures
• Liability
• Motor controls and hook-up
• Transformers
• Pad transformers
• Pole transformers
• Underground transformers

Lightning

• Commercial
• Industrial
• Parking lots
• Residential
• Airport lighting
• Lightning strikes

Products - Electrical

• Appliances
• Consumer products
• Failure
• Products liability
• Wiring
• Wiring insulation
• Electrical motors
• Elevators and electrical sliding glass doors

Utility - Electrical

• High voltage lines
• Power lines safety
• National safety codes
• Grounding and bonding of electrical circuits
• Transformers
• Pad transformers
• Pole transformers
• Underground transformers

Utility Poles

• Joint pole agreements
• Metal poles
• Telephone poles
• Wooden poles

Honors & Publications

Academic and Professional Affiliations

• American National Standards Institute - ANSI Standards

Credentials

Licenses

• Electrical Contractor, California
• Master Electrical Contractor, Arkansas
• Master Electrical Contractor, Nevada