Laborer blames contractors, others for electrical shock

A man is suing over claims he received an electrical shock while drilling a hole in the concrete floor of a construction site.

Carlos Aceves filed a lawsuit Aug. 4 in the Cook County Circuit Court against W.E. ONeil Construction Co., Rex Electric, Rex Electric & Technologies and Break Thru Enterprises.

Aceves alleges he was working as a laborer at a construction site at 11 S. LaSalle St. in Chicago on May 30 when the incident occurred.

The complaint states he was attempting to drill holes into the concrete floor of the building, and either directly, or with the drilling machine, came into contact with a live power line and received an electric shock.

As a result of the incident, Aceves claims he suffered personal and pecuniary injuries, endured great physical and emotional pain and discomfort and sustained physical and emotional impairment and disability. He also alleges he suffered physical disfigurement, has been prevented from attending to his usual affairs and lost income.

He blames the defendants, who were either contractors or sub-contractors on the project, for causing his injuries, saying they failed to reasonably inspect the premises, failed to turn off the electricity to the location where Aceves was drilling, failed to warn of the proximity of live electrical wires and failed to warn of a dangerous condition, among other negligent actions.

Aceves seeks a judgment of more than $150,000, plus costs. He is being represented by Kevin E. O’Reilly of The Law Offices of Kevin E. O’Reilly in Chicago.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Cook County Circuit Court. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note that a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it represents only one side of the story.