Biotech Awareness

Videos

To learn more about David's story, watch these videos:

Injured Agraquest Biotech Worker David Bell Tells His Story. Video of Interview with David Bell on December 12, 2008.


  • Labor On The Job interviews AgraQuest biotech worker David Bell. Bell talks about his work at the Davis California based company owned by Pam Marrone and how the lack of proper health and safety protection led to his contamination and sickness.
  • He also discusses how the company sought to cover-up their responsibility for his illness and the corruption and breakdown of the workers compensation system along with the failure of health and safety regulatory agencies such as OSHA.


Injured Worker's Mother Charges Workers Comp Fraud At California Fraud Assessment Commission. Video of Sandi Trend's testimony to the California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC) on June 17, 2009.


  • Sandi Trend, the mother of injured AgraQuest worker David Bell spoke at the California Department of Insurance, California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC) in Sacramento on 6/17/2009 about the illness of her son at the AgraQuest company in Davis, California.
  • Trend demanded that the California Fraud Commission investigate the cover-up of fraud by the failure of the Yolo County and Sacramento County District Attorneys to do their job and the role of the owner of AgraQuest, Pam Marrone in this criminal fraud. She pointed out that the Yolo County DA Daniel Stroski, the Sacramento DA Dale Kitching and the Insurance Commission had refused to prosecute Marrone's fraud.
  • This FAC commission does oversight on California District Attorneys prosecuting fraud and dispenses more than $29 million to District Attorney's in California to investigate Workers Comp fraud. However, they refuse to go after systemic fraud by the insurance industry bosses and those involved in this case.
  • Pam Marrone and AgraQuest conspired to violate health and safety regulations and lied about the injuries of employee David Bell to cover-up their liability. The insurance company Liberty Mutual has also fought David Bell's effort to get his healthcare taken care of.
  • The FAC commission which is chaired by William Zachry has itself refused to act and the fact that Zachry is also in insurance executive as Vice President of Risk Management for Safeway Inc.
  • Sandi Trend was interrupted repeatedly by the Chair, William Zachery, during her very limited, allotted time to give her presentation to the Commission -- until what was believed to be an attorney interrupted saying that if she (Trend) believes the District Attorney Worker's Compensation Fraud units were not doing their jobs, she (Trend) has a right to speak against District Attorney Worker's Compensation Fraud units receiving any funding at all.


"I don't know what employee rights are"? Lt. Daniel Stroski, Yolo County DA Workers Comp Unit. Video of Lt. Stroski's presentation at the California Department of Insurance Fraud Commission (FAC) on September 8, 2010.


  • Sandi Trend contacted Lt. Daniel Stroski of the Yolo County District Attorney Worker's Compensation Fraud Unit in the hope he would investigate. At first, he seemed eager to get involved and help uncover the corruption, but he quickly changed his position.
  • On 9/8/2010, at a meeting of the California Department of Insurance Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC), Lt. Daniel Stroski reported that he "did not know what employee rights are" to the commission.
  • Lt. Stroski refused to prosecute AgraQuest owner Pam Marrone and Liberty Mutual for committing workers comp fraud against injured AgraQuest biotech worker David Bell. The commission voted unanimously to again give $254,000 again to the Yolo County DA's office.
  • Money and greed won again (and the injured worker lost). Stroski wouldn't prosecute because the biotech industry was too powerful in California and because he was asking for additional funds from the FAC.



Sacramento DA Kitching Report on 9/8/2010 To California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC). Video of District Attorney Kitching's Report to the California FAC on September 8, 2010.


  • Sacramento District Attorney Dal Kitching who supervisors the Fraud Unit of the Sacramento District Attorney's office reports on his work at the California Fraud Assessment Commission on September 8, 2010 in Sacramento.
  • Sandi Trend tried to get the DA's Fraud Unit to investigate what happened to David Bell at AgraQuest, but the DA's office would not do their job. See the videos (posted on this page) of Trend's testimony to the California FAC on June 17, 2009, and September 9, 2009.

Injured Workers Mother Charges Fraud On 9/9/2009 At California Fraud Commission. Video of Sandi Trend's testimony to the California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC) on September 9, 2009.


  • On September 9, 2009 at a meeting of the California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC) in Sacramento, Sandi Trend (who is the mother of injured biotech worker David Bell) charged that the District Attorneys in Yolo County and Sacramento were failing to prosecute fraud by AgraQuest owner Pam Marrone and Liberty Mutual her insurance company.
  • Trend's son David Bell was sickened at the Davis based company and Marrone and Liberty Mutual refused to provide his healthcare despite evidence that he had over genetically engineered products in his body. She has presented this evidence to both offices as well as agents of the California Department of Insurance.


What's Going On? Sandi Trend Reports On Systemic Fraud At California Fraud Assessment Commission (FAC). Video of Sandi Trend testimony at California Department of Insurance Fraud Assessment Commission, in Sacramento, California, on September 9, 2010.


  • On 9/8/2010 in Sacramento, at the Department of Insurance Fraud Assessment Commission, Sandi Trend, mother of injured AgraQuest biotech worker David Bell, testified about the failure of Lt. Daniel Stroski of the Insurance Fraud Unit of Yolo County and Sacramento County DA Dale Kitching Fraud Unit head to prosecute workers comp fraud by AgraQuest owner Pam Marrone and Liberty Mutual insurance company.
  • She charged that there is a systemic corruption and cover-up by government agencies whose job it is to pursue workers compensation fraud.


Workers Comp, The Destruction Of Ca-OSHA/EPA And The Case Of Biotech Worker David Bell. Video of Sandi Trend interview, originally broadcast on May 13, 2008.


  • Labor On The Job" focuses on the case of AgraQuest biotech worker David Bell. Bell who worked at the Davis, California, biotech laboratory owned by former Monsanto scientist Pam Marrone was infected with fungus and bacteria while working.
  • He and his family have faced a terrifying battle for healthcare and justice from injuries on the job. Despite the fact that his mother found material in his body that was patented by scientists at the laboratory he has been prevented from getting full healthcare to save his life.
  • The corruption and breakdown of the workers compensation system is connected to the deregulation of workers compensation and the elimination of all medical doctors at Ca-OSHA.
  • Joining the show is his mother Sandi Trend, the last Cal-OSHA doctor Larry Rose and author of "Death On The Job" Daniel Berman.


"Gaming" The Workers Comp System Of California -- Mother Of Injured Agraquest Biotech Worker Speaks. Video of Sandi Trend speaking to the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers Compensation on December 10, 2009.


  • Mother Of Injured Agraquest Biotech Worker Speaks Out At California Commission On Health and Safety and Workers Compensation meeting on December 10, 2009. Sandi Trend, mother of injured Agraquest biotech worker David Bell, wanted to find out about a comment that insurance companies were "gaming" the system.
  • Angie Wei, chair of the commission and CA AFL-CIO Legislative Director said the workers comp system was being "gamed." Wei and the CA AFL-CIO previously had a "neutral" position on the so-called "reform" of Workers Comp by the SB899 bill pushed by the governor.
  • David Bell was nearly killed by AgraQuest owner Pam Marrone's lack of proper health and safety protection at the pesticide genetics laboratory, and Marrone denied workers compensation coverage of David Bell to limit her liability.


CA Insurance Shill Angry About Study Showing Gaming Of The Workers Comp System. Video of Theo Pahos at the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers Compensation, December 10, 2009.


  • California insurance company shill Theo Pahos complained about a report on the gaming of the CA workers comp system.
  • At a meeting on December 10, 2009 in Oakland of the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers Compensation (CHSWC), Theo Pahos representing the Association of California Insurance Companies was angry by the Rand corporation study that the industry was "gaming" the workers compensation system.
  • Injured worker Dina Padilla and Sandi Trend, mother of injured Agraquest biotech worker David Bell, had testified previously about the systemic corruption and fraud by the insurance industry and self insured employers.


The Bay Area Bio Lab & Synthetic Biology, False Solutions Part Two, Panel Discussion. Video of presentations by Sandi Trend, David Bell and Joan Chou in Berkeley, California, on March 29, 2012.


  • Convened by: Alliance for Humane Biotechnology, California BioSafety Alliance, California Coalition For Workers Memorial Day, Center for Environmental Health, Center for Food Safety, ETC Group, Friends of the Earth, Global Justice Ecology Project, Injured Workers National Network, International Center for Technology Assessment, Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project, West County Toxics Coalition.
  • A Risky Development: The University of California, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and the US Department of Energy have unveiled plans to build a high profile biotech laboratory in the East Bay. The lab and associated commercial activity will focus on developing biofuels and other products using synthetic biology: an extreme form of genetic engineering that creates artificial life.
  • Ground Zero for Syn Bio: Already a multi-billion-dollar field, synthetic biology is fast becoming the next 'biotech bubble' with the Bay Area as ground zero for this new industry . The San Francisco Bay Area is already home to over a dozen synthetic biology companies backed by some of the world's largest energy, pharmaceutical, chemical and agribusiness players as well as "garage biotech" hackers.
  • The next generation biofuels under development are a false solution to our environmental crises. The risks synthetic biology poses to worker safety, public health, social justice, and the environment are poorly understood and are as yet effectively unregulated.


Injured Workers Get Support from Matt Gonzalez at 8/1/2008 CCWMD Press Conference. Video of Matt Gonzalez speaking out on behalf of injured biotech worker David Bell.


  • Matt Gonzalez is an attorney who has served in various political positions and is currently working as Chief Attorney in the San Francisco Public Defender's Office.



Workers Memorial 2008 Presentation. Video of injured workers, their families and health and safety advocates speaking out in Davis, California, on April 27, 2008.


  • Injured workers, their families and health and safety advocates spoke out on April 27, 2008 in Davis, California.
  • One of the main topics was David Bell's injury at AgraQuest and Pam Marrone's refusal to accept responsibility. Bell was infected at the AgraQuest laboratory and the owner Pam Marrone refused to take responsibility for Bell's injuries.


Share by: