(Vernon, CT) – Matthew C. Gedansky, Tolland Judicial District State’s Attorney, announced that Dennis Botticello, age 69, of Suffield, and Glen Locke, age 67, of Somers, each pleaded guilty today in Rockville Superior Court before the Honorable Kathleen E. McNamara to a charge of Manslaughter in the Second Degree, in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-56.
The pleas stem from the death of Dennis Slater, age 56, of East Windsor and an employee of Botticello Inc., at a construction site in Vernon on July 22, 2022. An investigation showed that the proper, legal safeguards were not in place to prevent a trench collapse when an 8-foot-deep trench caved in at the site and buried the victim. Botticello owns Botticello Inc., and Locke was the equipment operator working near the victim at the time of the trench collapse. A joint investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Vernon Police Department determined that the defendants violated OSHA standards in the industry by not having the required safety equipment and other equipment to prevent trench cave-ins. Previously in 2015, OSHA investigators identified four serious violations related to trenching work by Botticello Inc. at a Stafford worksite.
When Botticello and Locke are sentenced in Rockville Superior Court on May 16, 2025, they each are expected to receive a sentence of 10 years in prison, suspended after five years served, followed by three years of probation. The plea agreement allows each defendant to argue for a lesser sentence.
This case is being prosecuted by State’s Attorney Gedansky.