UCLA Chemistry Professor Ordered to Stand Trial in Death of Lab Assistant

A UCLA chemistry professor was ordered Friday to stand trial on charges stemming from a laboratory fire that killed a 23-year-old staff research assistant.

Attorneys for Patrick Harran had asked a judge that the felony charges be dismissed or reduced to misdemeanors, but both requests were rejected.

Harran is due back in court May 9 for arraignment on three counts of willful violation of an occupational safety and health standard causing the death of an employee.

"This is not the run of the mill case, not the run of the mill crime," Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench said, adding that the death of Sheharbano "Sheri" Sangji was "an incredibly tragic event."

In denying the dismissal motion, Lench said there is "sufficient cause to believe Mr. Harran is guilty" and must stand trial.

Sangji died about two and a half weeks after the December 2008 laboratory fire at UCLA, which left her with burns over almost half of her body, according to evidence presented at a preliminary hearing last year.

The assistant—who was not wearing a lab coat—suffered second- and third-degree burns as she was transferring a highly flammable chemical agent, tert-Butyllithium, when it spilled from a syringe and onto her hands, arms and body and ignited, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Harran, 43, was charged in December 2011 along with the University of California Board of Regents, but criminal charges against the regents were later dismissed as the result of an "enforcement agreement" for corrective measures.

Defense attorney Thomas P. O'Brien argued Friday that charges against Harran should be dismissed because his client was not Sanji's employer but was instead a new employee of UCLA who had no knowledge of state safety regulations.

The attorney also told Lench that Harran did not intentionally cause Sanji's death.

"This was a tragic accident and someone died ... a horrible death," O'Brien said. "But that doesn't make an accident a crime."

Deputy District Attorney Craig Hum countered that Harran acted as both "supervisor and an employer" of Sanji. It was the professor who made the hiring decisions for his lab, and payment for assistants came from his budget, the prosecutor said.

It was Harran's responsibility to train Sanji and "make sure all appropriate regulations are followed," Hum said. The defendant "doesn't have to know his conduct violates the law" to be held responsible for safety violations, the prosecutor argued.

"He knew he was supposed to train her ... and he chose not to train her," Hum alleged.

After Lench refused to dismiss the charges, O'Brien put forward an argument to lower the charges to misdemeanors.

Harran is "not the typical defendant," the defense attorney said, adding that felony convictions could have a negative effect on his client's work in research.

The prosecutor, though, alleged Harran's behavior was felonious.

"Sheri Sangji died, and she died a horrible death," he said. "And the defendant needs to be punished for that."

Hum said the agreement with the UC regents that resulted in the dismissal of criminal charges has led to "huge steps" in fixing deficiencies in lab safety throughout the UC system. UC has "become one of the leaders in the country" in terms of laboratory safety and training, he said.

A $500,000 scholarship fund in Sanji's name was also established by UC officials.

Harran faces four and a half years in prison if convicted of the charges, according to the District Attorney's Office.