A superior court judge has ordered a Connecticut trucking company involved in a deadly accident into receivership and has appointed a Bridgeport lawyer to oversee company operations and protect its assets, the Hartford Courant reported.
American Crushing & Recycling and its owner, David Wilcox, have been under close scrutiny since July 29, when one of the company’s dump trucks went out of control as it descended Avon Mountain, causing a horrific accident at Routes 44 and 10 that claimed four lives and damaging 20 vehicles.
Judge Vanessa L. Bryant declined to find company owner David Wilcox in contempt of court on Tuesday, Oct. 4, despite requests from lawyers representing the state attorney general and the estate of a man killed in the crash that she do so, according to the Courant. They had presented evidence from investigators that they said showed that Wilcox has been disposing of company assets, in violation of court order that froze those assets.
With the company in receivership and its assets presumably protected, Bryant said she wanted to hear from Wilcox before determining whether he willfully violated that order. Wilcox is due before her at 10 a.m. Nov. 2. He did not appear at Tuesday’s hearing, the Courant reported.
Bryant, with the agreement of the lawyers at the hearing, appointed Matthew K. Beatman of the firm Zeisler & Zeisler to oversee American Crushing and protect its assets.
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell on Sept. 20 ordered the state Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend the registrations of all trucks owned by American Crushing. Rell said she acted after a company-owned truck was stopped Sept. 16 for allegedly being overweight by more than 18,000 pounds. Rell also ordered the DMV to prohibit the company from registering additional vehicles.
