"Obama administration" looking into manslaughter and perjury charges against BP, report says

[SidDithers]

DOJ looking into manslaughter and perjury charges against BP, report says

The Associated Press reports that the Department of Justice could possibly levy charges of manslaughter and perjury against BP and other companies involved in the Deepwater Horizon oilrig explosion and subsequent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Citing "people familiar with the investigation," the reports says that the DOJ is still considering bringing charges of manslaughter against the companies that owned and operated the rig.

Eleven people were killed when the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded in April 2010.

The DOJ is also looking into the congressional testimony given by executives from the companies involved with the Deepwater Horizon to see if they are untruthful, the report stated.

http://www.louisianarecord.com/news/234479-doj-looking-into-manslaughter-and-perjury-charges-against-bp-report-says

Sid

[aSpeckofDust]

1. Here comes another 30 year trial..that resolves nothing.

[Junkdrawer]

But there WILL be multi-thousand dollar fines....

"Janet, could you take care of this from petty cash? Thanks dear."

[RegieRocker]

4. A fine for manslaughter?

[Junkdrawer]

11. NYT: "In Justice Shift, Corporate Deals Replace Trials"

From Democracynow:

JUAN GONZALEZ: Why is the Justice Department increasingly avoiding corporate prosecutions? In a front-page article yesterday, the New York Times reported that the Justice Department has put off prosecuting more than fifty companies suspected of wrongdoing over the last three years. The decline in prosecutions is seen as a deliberate and dramatic shift in policy.

Rather than take corporations to court for high-profile cases, the Bush administration has instead relied on what are known as “deferred prosecution agreements.” These agreements impose fines and appoint an outside monitor to enforce internal changes at the company. Terms of the deals are often kept secret.

....

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/4/10/justice_department_increasingly_avoiding_corporate_prosecutions

[Junkdrawer]

13. More to the point:

AMY GOODMAN: To talk more about BP, we’re joined by a former top investigator at the Environmental Protection Agency. Up until his retirement in 2008, Scott West was a special agent in charge for the Criminal Investigation Division at the EPA.

In 2006, Scott West led an investigation of BP following a major oil pipeline leak in Alaska’s North Slope that spilled 250,000 gallons of oil on the Alaskan tundra. Before West finished his investigation, the Bush Justice Department reached a settlement with BP, and the oil company agreed to pay $20 million. At the same time, BP managed to avoid prosecution for the Texas City refinery explosion that killed fifteen workers by paying a $50 million settlement.


...

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/5/20/fmr_epa_investigator_scott_west_us

[JuniperLea]

3. Another?

Can you name a similar one?

[Newest Reality]

2. To which ...

BP replied, while sticking its fingers in its artificial ears:

"Nyah, nyah, nyah! LALALALALALA!"

[Rex]

5. Wow, some actual good news!

Don't see a lot of that around here. Thanks. I wondered when that issue would be addressed.

[gratuitous]

6. Yeah, and I might as well stand up

Because I have a feeling that monkeys will fly out of my butt before the Obama Justice Department brings criminal charges against any too-big-to-fail entity.

[woo me with science]

9. I hope they will follow through.

Not much here yet to get excited about, though.

[woo me with science]

7. Why do "considering" and "looking into" get a headline? nt

[SidDithers]

8. Mere speculation about "considering" and "looking into" caused apoplexy...

when it was Social Security.

Sid

[woo me with science]

12. Social security is still on the table.

Let me know when lawsuits are filed.

[unblock]

10. those are the kind of charges you bring against individuals, not companies

individuals who committed those crimes while employed by those companies, no doubt; but not the companies themselves.

[Initech]

14. If CU logic says corporations are people... Let's try BP as a person.

Punishable by death penalty.