Tech 101

State officials have fined Sony Pictures $58,805 for five workplace violations stemming from the March death of a crew member on the Downey set of the feature film “Spider-Man,” a spokesman for the agency said Wednesday.

Among the citations issued by the Division of Occupational Safety and Health are a pair of $25,000 fines for modifying a forklift without the manufacturer’s approval and without consideration for load capacity.

The other penalties were for improper training of a forklift operator, failure to post required operating rules for heavy equipment and a lack of protective gear for one of

the employees, said Cal/OSHA spokesman Dean Fryer. The company has 15 days to appeal.

Susan Tick, a Sony spokeswoman, would not comment on a possible appeal.

She said that Sony deeply regretted the accident and that “the company does all it can on an ongoing basis to ensure that all of our crews on all our productions follow strict safety procedures.”

Tim Holcombe, 45, of Monrovia died when a forklift modified to be used as a crane fell on him as he and other workers were lifting a 15-by-26-foot metal sign framework to the top of a building facade on the “Spider-Man” set.

State officials determined that the load shifted, causing the forklift to fall onto a basket carrying Holcombe and another welder.

In June, state regulators accused Sony Pictures of thwarting their investigation into the accident on its set at a former Rockwell International aerospace plant.

Fryer said the company did not promptly hand over documents relating to the accident and would not allow investigators to immediately interview employees.

‘Sony took extreme steps to control our access to employees to the point that their attorneys were on the set advising them not to speak to investigators on the day of the accident,” Fryer said. “‘They later allowed Access, but in a very controlled setting.”

Fryer acknowledged that Sony had the right to ask for officials to make formal requests for interviews and documents, though he said it was “highly unusual” under the circumstances.” He added, however, that Sony has cooperated with Cal/OSHA’s investigation since June.

Sony officials said they offered to cooperate with Cal/OSHA and the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office and voluntarily made crew members available to the district attorney’s office for interviews, which were held.