<P> The Sheri Sangji case is the first criminal case resulting from an academic laboratory accident . </P> <P> The case arose from a fatal accident that occurred in the chemistry laboratory of Patrick Harran at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Research assistant Sheharbano "Sheri" Sangji suffered severe burns from a fire that occurred on December 29, 2008 when a plastic syringe she was using to transfer the pyrophoric reagent tert - butyllithium from one sealed container to another came apart, spilling the chemical, and igniting a fire . Sangji was not wearing a protective lab coat and her clothing caught fire, resulting in severe burns that led to her death 18 days later . </P> <P> An investigation was conducted by the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal / OSHA), which protects the public and workers from safety hazards and enforces the U.S. State of California's occupational and public safety laws . </P>

In 2008 a graduate student died in laboratory while working with tbuli