Landscape firm pleads guilty in employee death

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An Everett-based landscaping company has pleaded guilty to criminal charges in connection with the death of a 19-year-old worker who was killed in a bark-blower truck in 2014.

A representative of Pacific Topsoils entered the plea Monday morning during arraignment in King County Superior Court on a charge of violation of labor-safety regulations. Judge Johanna Bender then imposed the maximum penalty of $100,000, according to Dan Donohoe, spokesman for the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

The case marked the first time in more than 20 years that the prosecutor's office had criminally charged a private company over a workplace-safety incident. Killed was Bradley Hogue, of Lake Stevens, who was working a summer job with Pacific Topsoils.