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Posted on 01/15/2005 8:19:30 AM PST by Gritty
PENROSE -- A metal stamping plant owner says he plans to sue EPA criminal investigators for at least $10 million over a fruitless investigation that nearly ruined his business.
Steve McNabb, whose wife, Jan, owns American Carolina Stamping, this week said he is gathering information to sue members of the Environmental Protection Agency's Criminal Investigation Division for discrimination and retaliation during a more than four-year investigation of the Transylvania County company.
EPA officials Friday said they would not comment on specifics because of a Freedom of Information Act request made by U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor, R-Brevard, regarding the investigation.
McNabb said he plans to sue for $10 to $15 million for lost business, attorneys fees and other damages.
"When you're under criminal investigation you can't take government contracts," he said. "Sixty-five percent of our business was government contracts."
Raid, lawsuits
On Jan. 15, 1999, CID and other law enforcement officers raided the plant that manufactures wire forms, electrical contacts and metal stamping products. Officers were acting on tips that the plant between U.S. 64 and Old Hendersonville Highway was improperly disposing hazardous waste, including a hexane-based solvent, commercially sold as Zep.
"The investigation to date has revealed the illegal storage and disposal of hazardous waste by American Carolina Stamping," special agent Tyler Amon said in his request for a search warrant.
McNabb contended that the solvent was too expensive to dump and that he reuses it until it evaporates. Zep is only considered a hazardous waste because of its flammability, he said.
McNabb said tips came from disgruntled employees and that the investigation was retaliation for insults he lobbed at the initial investigator, an N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources employee.
He enlisted the help of federal and state politicians as the investigation continued and garnered media attention including an appearance on the CBS news program 60 Minutes, which looked at alleged abuses by the CID.
As is the custom of federal law enforcement groups, the CID refused to talk about the case while it was open or even to confirm whether such an investigation existed.
Meanwhile, McNabb uncovered information from DENR pointing to the wire tapping of his phone. In 2000 he brought a conspiracy lawsuit against the CID, but the $6 million complaint was denied because of the federal agents' special immunity.
In 2003, 10 months before the expiration of the five-year limit on investigations, the EPA closed the case against McNabb. The organization then took up civil action against him. But in November it dropped that too.
Building a case
In recent action McNabb sued successfully to unseal special agent Amon's affidavit.
His next move, he said, is to build a case to get information about the investigation itself. McNabb said he doubted EPA would respond to his request, so he went through Congressman Taylor, who filed a Freedom of Information Act request Aug. 4.
Asked what the difference was between a congressional FOIA request and an one originating from an ordinary citizen, Washington EPA spokesman Pete Rosenberg said he wasn't sure there was one.
"I just know that it is being worked on," he said of the request.
Another avenue for members of Congress to get such information, Rosenberg said, would be through oversight rules.
Taylor aide Richard Faulkner could not be reached for comment, but in a telephone message Faulkner said he anticipated the request would be finished soon.
A Jan. 11 letter to Taylor from EPA Principal Deputy Associate Administrator John Reeder said he expected information on the investigation would be released "in the next several weeks."
"We have compiled a large amount of information responsive to your recent request, and are currently reviewing the files to determine what is releasable under FOIA," Reeder said.
Rosenberg and EPA Atlanta-bureau spokesman Fred Burnside would not comment as to whether the agency was feeling extra pressure from Taylor.
As a chairman of an appropriations subcommittee, Taylor controls federal purse strings and can bring to bear financial pressure on various departments. In addition, the banking and timber baron has proven a tough foe to environmental organizations.
Justification
Organized in 1982 the CID has a staff of 200 and handles criminal investigations of environmental violations.
Like other law enforcement officers, CID agents are armed and use body armor. They receive nine weeks of training, including one on the use of protective gear, such as respirators.
In the lawsuit McNabb said he wants to go after the organization itself, which he said takes on investigations as a way to justify its existence.
"I believe that people do dumb things and I think we should have environmental rules, but we don't need this," he said. "Their modus operandi is to throw it in a pile for five years, let the company go bankrupt and start again."
But the EPA spokesmen pointed to increased demands placed on the CID, including its pairing with other law enforcement agencies to assess possible environmental threats during and after Sept. 11.
"We had a tremendous amount of officers assigned to help at both the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the plane crash in Pennsylvania," Burnside said.
Officers, he said, are present at such events as the Super Bowl, the G8 Summit and national political party conventions.
According to a November press release, the CID charged 293 defendants with environmental crimes in fiscal year 2004, or 46 more than the year before.
bump
Lash these badge-happy moronic investigators to a corner lamp post in Fallujah and let them experience how it feels to be targeted by terrorists.
Leni
...and one might ask, so what? Is it any business of anyones how a business is done or run as long as it is honestly?
And in other news-Sun will now rise in the east.
Along with all the other restraints that are his job, but he fails to uphold.
In case nobody else gave you a PING.
"President Bush needs to uphold our Constitution by enforcing the limits on the power of the federal government, especially in regard to the "police powers" authority of the E.P.A."
Don't hold your breath.
Libertarian ping.To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here.
BTTT!!!!!!!
In other words, gasoline. Gasoline contains a good fraction of hexane.
The new city fee comes compliments of the federal government, according to city manager Eric Sorensen. As part of an effort to control nonpoint source water pollution from runoff, the federal government is looking at putting water-quality standards on the discharge from city storm sewers. Runoff from lawns, streets and parking lots can carry a wide range of contaminants, including dog droppings, lawn chemicals, fertilizers, gasoline, oil and an assortment of litter.
Councilman Dieter Mielimonka said when the charge is billed there should be a note added to every bill -- "This charge due to a federal mandate."
If it was true that this was due to a federal mandate then why isn't every municipality doing it?
Dittos galore!
bump
Got to drive a steak through it's heart. I'm telling you.
Same reason that not every business in America has been forced to comply with the ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act). We don't have enough lawyers.
It's just a matter of time, though. There are more lawyers in law school than there are practicing law today.
I hope he fries the b@st@rds.
I went through this same sort of thing in the early 70's when the EPA first got going. A bunch of sanctimonious do-gooders out to save the world from filthy capitalists like me.
A disgruntled, ex-employee and it was off to the races. We'd never even had a lost time accident. Didn't matter. Made us spend a fortune into bringing in our entire operation into compliance with some of their 'we don't know for sure if this is a hazard or not but we want to be sure' regulations.
This was well and fine for the supposed safety of our workers, and would have even been fair and equitable if all of our competitors were forced to do the same. Of course, they weren't.
The rise of liberal do-good fascism in the US.
Their Gestapo-like tactics and their protection from any recourse was especially galling.
That's a mighty discouraging thought. I think we have some 600,000 practicing lawyers the last time that I looked, and over 2,000,000 people employed in the legal area.
Ballooning that already too-large number further is just an impediment as far as I am concerned.
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