Abstract: On January 22, 1998, Employee #1, an auto worker at a manufacturing plant in Fremont, CA, was working alone on the passenger car seat unloading dock/conveyance unit. He was using a mechanical winch operated by foot pedal to unload car seats from a trailer when the rope became tangled around the capstan. Employee #1 was trying to untangle the rope when his right ring finger became caught between the rope and the capstan, amputating the tip. He was taken to Washington Hospital in Fremont, where he underwent surgery to reattach his fingertip. The accident was caused by an unguarded pinch point, for which the employer was cited for a serious violation of T8CCR 4002(A).