A veteran Detroit-area auto worker was killed after being crushed by a robotic arm during work to retool a Stellantis factory in Michigan.
Ronald Adams, 63, died in April 2025 at the automaker’s Dundee Engine Plant, according to allegations detailed in a recently filed lawsuit.
Adams, a U.S. Air Force veteran, had been repairing equipment inside the Stellantis-owned facility, part of the company behind Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge and Ram vehicles. The lawsuit says two coworkers left him alone to continue working on the machinery while they stepped away for a break.
When one of the workers returned minutes later, Adams — a father and grandfather — was found trapped between a robotic arm and a conveyor.
Court records reviewed by The Detroit News state that employees immediately called paramedics and summoned an on-site electrician to lift the robotic arm off Adams, an experienced mechanic who had previously worked for Northwest Airlines.
In a statement cited by the outlet, a worker said Adams was found “hunched over with his right arm on conveyor,” while the robotic arm had his “right shoulder pinned.”
Three workers helped emergency crews transfer Adams from the conveyor belt onto a stretcher. He was taken to a hospital, where he later died.
A medical examiner determined that Adams died from severe crush injuries and “traumatic asphyxia.”
Ronald Adams, 63, was crushed to death in April of last year inside the conglomerate’s Dundee Engine Plant
A robot works with engine parts at the Stellantis Dundee Engine Complex on August 18, 2022 in Dundee, Michigan
According to a lawsuit filed by his widow Shamenia Stewart-Adams, also seen by the outlet, there were a lack of safety guards and safe work practices when Adams died.
The suit said that the lack of measures allowed the robotic arm to pin and crush Adams, who had worked in the plant for two decades.
At the time of his death, Adams was working with a group to retool the plant as it prepared to start producing a new four-cylinder engine.
He was working on a large industrial chamber washer that cleans out engine parts, with the robotic arm bringing components to and from the washer.
According to the outlet, the lawsuit hinges on a safety mechanism for the washer that Adams’ estate claims was ‘electronically bypassed’ with a special key.
This alleged bypass allowed Adams to get to work even while the machinery around him, including the robotic arm, was not in the correct work-safe mode.
Fives Cinetic Corp, who are named in the suit, supplied the washer to the plant and claimed in their response that the accident would not have happened if Stellantis had followed ‘safe work practices,’ the outlet reported.
Court filings seen by the outlet also indicate that other factors may have played a part in his death.
According to a lawsuit filed by his widow Shamenia Stewart-Adams, there was a lack of safety guards and safe work practices when Adams died
A worker is seen here assembling an engine inside the Dundee plant where Adams was pinned beneath the robotic arm
Adams was found when his coworkers returned from a break to find him pinned beneath the heavy machinery. The inside of the Detroit Assembly Complex-Mack owned by the firm is seen here
A worker reported an issue with the robotic system that killed Adams two days before the fatal incident, saying it would move while in ‘dry run’ mode.
An attorney for Adams also told The Detroit News that there was no evidence to suggest that Adams was the one who used the key to disable the robot’s safety features before his death.
Lawyers for Stellantis filed earlier this year to have the case dismissed, but Judge Catherine Heise denied the motion.
Adams is one of three Stellantis workers in the US to have died in industrial incidents in the last two years.
The first happened in Toledo, Ohio, in August of 2024 when Antonio Gaston, 53, was crushed after being snagged on a piece of equipment.
Earlier this month James Brasher, 57, died after falling from the second-story loading bay of a former Mopar office and hitting his head on a dumpster, he died instantly.
The two men and Adams were all members of the United Auto Workers.
Antonio Gaston was crushed to death after being snagged on a piece of equipment while leaning over a conveyor belt
A 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L goes through the Framer 1 section of the assembly line at the Stellantis Detroit Assembly Complex-Mack on June 10, 2021 in Detroit, Michigan
Earlier this month James Brasher died after falling from the second-story loading bay of a former Mopar office and hitting his head on a dumpster, he died instantly
Gaston’s widow has filed a lawsuit in federal court against the firm claiming the conveyor system that snagged him lacked crucial equipment to prevent such a thing from happening.
An investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) ruled that he reached across a conveyor belt when he was caught.
The watchdog issued a ‘serious violation’ with regards to machine guarding inside the Toledo plant and fined them $16,000, the outlet reported. The company contested the fine and settled for around $11,000.
An OSHA investigation is underway into the death of Brasher and a probe continues into the death of Adams.
The Daily Mail has contacted Stellantis for comment.
A spokesperson previously told The Detroit News: ‘We regularly evaluate and strengthen our internal standards and protocols to protect employees across our operations.
‘Sharing best practices throughout the organization helps reinforce our safety culture and supports consistent performance.
‘Stellantis continues to enhance workplace safety and ensure all sites meet or exceed regulatory requirements.’
