Mine manager sentenced for role in deadly crane accident

A mine manager at a local quarry will serve six months in prison after one of his employees was killed in an accident nearly two years ago.

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A mine manager at a local quarry will serve six months in prison after one of his employees was killed in an accident nearly two years ago. Anthony Valente was sentenced Friday after accepting a plea deal.

He was charged in the death of Darren Miller, who was hit by a piece of falling equipment in October 2022 at RJ Valente Gravel in Grafton. Prosecutors said Valente ignored the safety features of a crane that broke and struck Miller.

During victim impact statements read by prosecutors, Miller's wife described the pain his death has caused.

"I ask you, could you imagine what it would feel like to learn that the person you love the most is just gone? I never got the chance to say goodbye. I never dreamt that I would be a widow by the age of 30."

Miller's family asked the court to reconsider the plea deal saying a six-month sentence was not long enough. Prosecutors said it was a complicated case and decided a plea deal was the best option.

"We knew we had an uphill battle to prosecute this as manslaughter, and we felt that the priority here was to hold someone accountable," Rensselaer County District Attorney Mary Pat Donnelly said.

Valente read a brief statement before the sentencing and apologized to Miller's family. He was also sentenced to five years of probation.