Boss opts not to give evidence in dad’s death trial

AGLAZING firm boss charged with killing his father who died in a fall at Cribbs Causeway has opted not to give evidence to a jury.

A jury at Bristol Crown Court has been told Arthur Harbutt, 78, fell backwards from a scaffolding platform when helping to manhandle a glass panel to an upper level of a Go Outdoors shop being refurbished.

He landed on a concrete floor and suffered unsurvivable head injuries in March 2018, the court heard.

The deceased’s son Garry Harbutt, 54, of Oldbury in the West Midlands, denies a charge of manslaughter by gross negligence but the company has pleaded guilty to an offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Harbutt further denies the offence was committed with his consent or connivance or was attributable to his neglect.

Harbutt was due to give evidence yesterday but his barrister, Dominic Kay QC, told the jury he would not be calling witnesses.

Earlier the jury was read a statement from roofer Cory Davis, who stated he saw a man stumble and hit his head on a steel beam as he fell.

Mr Davis said: “There was utter panic and shouting. I could hear glass shatter.

“I ran towards the man on the floor. I called the emergency services and paramedics arrived very quickly.”

In another statement Jean McBride, a shop assistant, stated how she saw a man hit the floor.

She described how his fellow workers displayed “shock, horror and astonishment” and dropped the pane of glass they were handling.

Arthur Harbutt was taken to hospital but his head injuries were catastrophic, the court heard.

A post-mortem examination concluded he died as a result of severe head injuries caused by the fall and had no underlying medical conditions.

Garry Harbutt told police it was his father who decided they would use a scaffold to get the job done, and said his father had also wanted guardrails to be removed on steps to allow the glass to be carried up.

Garry Harbutt accepted he had not produced a new method statement to deal with the use of the scaffold, but said: “We verbally risk assessed the new method to ensure that everyone knew how to work safely. The gang did not raise any concerns and I believed the revised system was safe.”

He added that his father had a history of medical issues, including several strokes, and he thought it was possible that he had had some form of medical episode on the platform that caused his fall.

The jury has heard Harbutt, a man of previous good character, had gained certificates from courses on working at height. Several character witnesses described him as a man who doted on his father from an early age, cared for him, and would not want him harmed in any way.

One said: “Garry is a reputable character who people can turn to for help and advice at any time.

“He is trustworthy and there is not a bad bone in his body.”

The case continues.