Watsonville-based farm owner charged with involuntary manslaughter after 2020 employee death

The case centers on the 2020 death of a worker who was strangled when the hood on his clothing was caught in the spinning shaft of a 16,000-pound spinach harvester.

WATSONVILLE — The owner of a Watsonville-based farm has been formally charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to the 2020 death of one of his employees in a workplace incident, according to the Santa Clara County Office of the District Attorney.

The president of Willoughby Farms, Inc., 50-year-old David Willoughby, was arraigned on the felony charges Tuesday. He faces a potential maximum sentence of four years in prison.

Around 4:50 a.m. on Oct. 15, 2020, Carlos Jimenez Cruz, a 32-year-old employee of Willoughby Farms died when the hood on his clothing was caught in the spinning shaft of a 16,000-pound spinach harvester, the DA’s Office said. Prosecutors allege that the farm didn’t provide adequate training and left dangerous parts of the machine exposed.

“Employers have a basic responsibility to make sure their workers are safe,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “It is a tragedy and a crime when a person doing their job is injured or killed because an employer fails to pay attention to safety.”

An investigation into the incident by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration revealed that Cruz was performing routine maintenance on the machine when his hood was caught. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The corporation and an affiliated LLC was expected to be arraigned on the same charges on Wednesday. The farm faces “millions in fines” for violating three labor codes, according to the DA’s Office.

Willoughby Farms did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday.

Prosecutors pointed out in the release that a Santa Clara County grand jury had previously indicted the owner and project manager of a construction company after the 2012 death of a worker in a trench collapse. Both the owner and the project manager were later convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to two years in prison.