Month: March 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Lisa F. Garcia, the Regional Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), Region 2, announced today that the United States has filed a civil lawsuit against UNITED ALLOYS AND STEEL CORPORATION (“Defendant”) and has simultaneously filed a consent decree settling the lawsuit.  In the complaint, brought pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA”) – commonly known as the Superfund statute – the United States alleged that the Defendant arranged for the disposal or treatment of mercury by Port Refinery, Inc. (“Port Refinery”), a mercury refining business in the Village of Rye Brook, New York, which led to releases of mercury into the environment.  The consent decree provides for a payment of $260,000 by the Defendant for costs incurred by EPA in conducting clean-up activities at the Port Refinery site (the “Site”).

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “United Alloys and Steel Corporation played a part in causing contamination in a residential community by delivering 17,253 pounds of scrap mercury for re-smelting purposes to Port Refinery, and it is paying a share of the costs that EPA had to incur to clean up this site.  The parties responsible for this environmental contamination are now being held accountable.”

EPA Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia said: “This company sent scrap mercury to the site operator, which handled mercury in a way that resulted in it being released into the environment and contaminating homes.  Even relatively small amounts of mercury can cause serious health problems.  EPA has addressed mercury vapors in people’s homes at the site, and now we are holding this company accountable for its part in putting people at risk.” 

As alleged in the complaint filed today in White Plains federal District Court:

The Defendant arranged for Port Refinery’s treatment or disposal of scrap mercury at the Site.  Port Refinery’s treatment and processing of mercury sent by the Defendant and other parties led to extensive releases of mercury into the environment, necessitating two separate clean-up actions by EPA.  In connection with the second clean-up, EPA incurred costs at the Site for investigative and removal activities, including, among other things, excavating and disposing of more than 9,300 tons of mercury-contaminated soil from the Site.

In the consent decree filed today, the Defendant admits and accepts responsibility for the following:

• EPA has determined that from the 1970s through the early 1990s, Port Refinery engaged in, among other things, the business of mercury reclaiming, refining, and processing;
• Port Refinery operated in the Village of Rye Brook out of a two-story garage bordered by private residences on its south, east, and west sides;
• EPA has determined that Port Refinery took virtually no environmental precautions or safety measures during its mercury refinement process;
• EPA has determined that Port Refinery released a significant amount of mercury into the environment, contaminating the Site;
• EPA has determined that mercury from the Defendants’ mercury-containing products was comingled at the Site and contributed to the mercury released into the environment; and
• United Alloys and Steel Corporation delivered 17,253 pounds of scrap mercury for re-smelting purposes to Port Refinery during its period of operations.

*                *                *

Pursuant to the consent decree, the Defendant will pay a total of $260,000 in costs incurred by EPA.   The payment amount was based on the Defendant’s documented inability to pay its full share of the costs incurred.

This lawsuit is the United States’ eighth lawsuit against responsible parties to recover clean-up costs for the second clean-up at the Site.  With this settlement, the United States has recovered a total of $3,079,392 from responsible parties. 

The consent decree will be lodged with the District Court for a period of at least 30 days before it is submitted for the Court’s approval to provide public notice and to afford members of the public the opportunity to comment on the consent decree.

Mr. Williams thanked the assigned EPA Region 2 Assistant Regional Counsel for his critical work on this matter.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Environmental Protection Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony J. Sun is in charge of the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

The Justice Department and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico on behalf of the Puerto Rico Department of Justice and the Puerto Rico Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) have reached an agreement to ensure the health and safety of the animals housed at the former Dr. Juan A. Rivero Zoo and the Centro de Detención en Cambalache (Cambalache). Under the agreement, the approximately 500 animals currently housed at the Zoo and Cambalache will be relocated within the next six months to facilities that are equipped and prepared to humanely and appropriately house and care for the animals.

The Justice Department recently arranged, with the assistance and coordination of DENR, for experts from the Wild Animal Sanctuary to complete an inventory and evaluation of the conditions of the animals at the Zoo and Cambalache. Based on the information gathered during these evaluations, the Wild Animal Sanctuary is developing a plan for the transfer of all of the animals housed at the Zoo and at Cambalache to sanctuaries and other appropriate facilities in the continental United States. The Wild Animal Sanctuary operates four wildlife sanctuaries in Colorado and Texas, encompassing more than 33,000 acres, and will aid in relocating the animals from the Zoo and Cambalache to these and other facilities, as necessary and appropriate, to immediately address their pressing health and safety needs.

As part of the joint efforts between federal and local agencies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has already removed a bald eagle, a golden eagle, two great horned owls, a red tail hawk, and two snakes. Additional transfers are expected in the upcoming weeks.

“We recognize the cooperation of Secretary Anais Rodríguez Vega who has made a laudable commitment to improve the health and welfare of the animals at the Zoo and Cambalache by working alongside federal agencies to relocate them to locations throughout the United States,” said U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico. “We will continue to support the efforts to expeditiously rescue all the animals according to the recommendations for relocation to be made by the veterinary experts brought to Puerto Rico by the Wild Animal Sanctuary.” 

“We deeply appreciate the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in collaboration with Puerto Rico environmental and justice authorities to facilitate the transfer of these animals to a destination where their health and safety needs can be met,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.   

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Gottfried for the District of Puerto Rico and Senior Trial Attorney Mary Hollingsworth and Trial Attorneys Kamela Caschette, Briena Strippoli and Matthew Morris of the Environment and Natural Resources Division are handling this matter. The Justice Department worked closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General and Investigative and Enforcement Services to achieve this successful resolution.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Case Filed Following Overdose Death of Man in Virginia Last Year

            WASHINGTON – Dr. Robert M. Cao, 39, of Lafayette, Louisiana, and previously of Falls Church, Virginia, was sentenced yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to 15 months in prison for five felony counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance outside the scope of his professional practice. Cao pleaded guilty on November 8, 2022 to prescribing various narcotic pain medications in the months and days leading up to an overdose death in Virginia.

            The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, and Chief Kevin Davis, of the Fairfax County, Virginia Police Department.

            In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Tanya S. Chutkan ordered 36 months of supervised release, 100 hours of community service, and ordered that he not hold a job that would give him access to controlled substances.

            According to court documents, Cao was licensed to practice medicine in the District of Columbia and Virginia. On at least five occasions in 2021, he knowingly and intentionally wrote prescriptions for oxycodone and hydrocodone for a man identified as “V.C.” These Schedule II controlled substances have a high potential for abuse. Cao provided the narcotic prescriptions to the victim without having any doctor-patient relationship with him, without any physical examination, diagnosis, or treatment plan, and knowing that the victim had no medical condition that would necessitate such prescriptions.

            On May 31, 2021, first responders were dispatched to a Fairfax, Virginia residence in response to a 911 call for assistance regarding “V.C.,” after his girlfriend found him cold and non-responsive. He was pronounced deceased under suspicious circumstances.

            A subsequent autopsy report documented the cause of death as acute combined oxycodone and ethanol poisoning. On the nightstand next to where “V.C.” was found were prescription bottles, including one containing Percocet (a brand name of the narcotic analgesic oxycodone/acetaminophen) pills filled on May 23, 2021. Cao was the prescribing doctor listed on the bottle.

            Court filings also detail text message exchanges between Cao and “V.C.,” including discussions about Cao prescribing narcotic pain medications to “V.C.” in exchange for agreeing to give Cao a kickback of some of the pills he had prescribed, and meetings between the two, including a meeting in a parking lot on the night before the man’s death so Cao could get a portion of the narcotic pills from “V.C.” 

            “It’s outrageous that someone who had a duty to ‘do no harm’ would turn around and prescribe a medically unnecessary, dangerous drug,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “People in our country are dying by the thousands from drug overdoses. The defendant was better positioned than most people to know the potential consequences of illegal distribution, yet he nevertheless decided to unlawfully prescribe a drug, regardless of the life-threatening consequences.”

            “Medical professionals take an oath to do no harm to their patients and public, but in this case, Robert Cao wrote unnecessary prescriptions for highly addictive narcotics,” said Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs, of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division. “As demonstrated by this investigation, the risks presented by opioid diversion outside of proper clinical practice are such that even a few illicit prescriptions can prove fatal. Along with our partners, we will continue our mission of bringing those who disregard patient safety and well-being by operating such criminal schemes to justice.”

            As detailed in court documents, Cao took several steps to avoid detection from law enforcement and regulatory authorities. For example, he advised the victim not to create a paper trail, and to fill the prescriptions at times when they were least likely to be questioned by pharmacies. Cao also hid the pad that he used to write the man prescriptions, which Cao took from a District of Columbia cosmetic office where he previously worked, at his home inside a hollowed-out container made to look like a diary. 

            After learning of the victim’s untimely death, Cao created fraudulent backdated medical records to make it appear that Cao had provided legitimate prescriptions to the victim as part of a lawful doctor-patient relationship.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Fairfax County Police Department.

            The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anne P. McNamara and Christine Macey of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. 

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Remarks as Delivered

Thank you, Attorney General Garland. I want to thank Mayor Greenberg, Council President Winkler, Interim Chief of Police Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel, Louisville Metro, and LMPD for their cooperation with the Justice Department’s investigation. I also want to thank the outstanding team led by the Civil Rights Division for their tireless efforts on this matter. And I want to especially thank the many many community members who shared their experiences with our team during the investigation.

As the Attorney General announced, our investigation has revealed a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the United States Constitution and federal law. LMPD’s ability to serve and protect the people of Louisville has been compromised, and the findings are deeply troubling and sobering.

But we are committed to working with Louisville on a path forward to constitutional policing and stronger police-community trust. And that is why I am pleased that the Justice Department and Louisville have entered into an agreement in principle. In that agreement, we commit to negotiating a court-enforceable consent decree to ensure sustainable, constitutional and effective public safety and emergency response services in Louisville. By entering into this agreement, the city and the police department have taken a critical step forward and shown their commitment to moving expeditiously to implement reforms aimed at remedying the problems that we have identified through our investigation. And I want to commend them for taking this step. I also want to acknowledge that Louisville did not wait for us to issue findings to start instituting change. In the wake of Breonna Taylor’s tragic and terrible death, the city made changes through its settlement with her family, in addition to other measures.

The agreement in principle only represents a framework. And in the coming months, we will use this framework to negotiate a comprehensive consent decree with the city that will be filed in federal court. And we will soon be meeting with, and reaching out to, community members and law enforcement to hear your ideas about the kind of police department and policing you want to see in your community.

In negotiating and developing a consent decree, we will lean on the lessons we have learned from consent decrees in other cities across the country. We have learned – and I have seen firsthand – that consent decrees can lead to lasting and real change. Across the country, the Justice Department has worked collaboratively with not only city and police officials but also members of the public who are invested in finding better ways for their cities to meet public safety challenges. Our approach has led to significant improvements:

In Seattle, for example, the independent monitor reported a 60% decrease in the use of serious force since 2014.

In Albuquerque, the independent monitor recently reported serious uses of force drop by a third from previous years.

And in Baltimore, the independent monitor recently found that officers are using force less often.

We will apply these lessons in Louisville. And the consent decree we negotiate and implement here will address the specific context of Louisville Metro Government and LMPD, and this community’s needs. The agreement in principle commits us to including mechanisms in the consent decree that will facilitate ongoing participation of community members, as well as police officers, in the implementation of reform. We need this entire community to help us craft solutions that will result in real, lasting change in Louisville.

The agreement in principle also commits us to selecting a third-party independent monitor who will assist the court and parties in determining whether the consent decree is being implemented. In 2021, I reviewed the department’s use of monitors in these contexts and recommended, and the Attorney General agreed to, actions that ensure that policing consent decrees minimize costs, enhance transparency, involve voices from the community and move a community as efficiently as possible to the lasting change that we all desire and that the people of Louisville deserve.

As we move forward, we know that we can achieve constitutional policing only by using every tool available. In that vein, just this morning, the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services announced that it will produce a guide for police chiefs and mayors across the country to help them assess the appropriateness of the use of specialized units, like the unit formerly known as VIPER here in Louisville, as well as how to ensure necessary management, oversight and accountability of such units.

The Justice Department also supports co-responder and community responder models that pair law enforcement and behavioral health professionals to attend to people experiencing a crisis, which will free up law enforcement officers to address more serious, violent offenses and save lives.

These resources will be available to the LMPD, as they are to police agencies across our nation.

To the men and women of the LMPD: We recognize the many challenges faced by police officers in Louisville and communities across the country. And we know that police officers risk their lives every day in the line of duty. And we know also that you need the public’s trust to do your jobs effectively and to keep communities safe.

To the people of Louisville: Whether here or around the country, police reform won’t happen overnight or by chance. It will take time, along with focused effort and sustained commitment. In communities across America, even in communities where that trust has been broken, we have seen transformative reform rebuild relationships, advance public safety and bring us closer to this nation’s promise of justice and equality under the law. And in the months ahead – because of the proactive leadership in this city; because of the energy and vibrancy of this community; and because of this police department’s commitment for reform – together, we can shape that same progress right here in Louisville. Together, we can build a stronger Louisville: a Louisville that protects the safety, rights and dignity of all.

I will now turn things over to Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, who will discuss the findings of our investigation in greater detail.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Remarks as Delivered

Good morning, everyone.

On April 26, 2021, I announced that the Justice Department had opened a civil investigation into the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government and the Louisville Metro Police Department. Our investigation sought to determine whether those entities engage in a pattern or practice of violations of the Constitution or federal law.

I am here today to announce the findings of that investigation. I am also announcing that the Justice Department, Louisville Metro, and LMPD have agreed in principle to negotiate toward a consent decree.

Here with me from the Justice Department are Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta and Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, who is in charge of our Civil Rights Division.

I also want to acknowledge Mayor Greenberg, Council President Winkler, and Interim Chief of Police Gwinn-Villaroel – thank you for joining us today. 

In 2020, LMPD officers shot and killed Breonna Taylor in her own home in the middle of the night. The officers were executing a search warrant but found no evidence of any crime. In a separate criminal case, we have charged that the officers involved in obtaining the warrant knew that the affidavit that supported the warrant contained false and misleading information. Ms. Taylor’s death brought immeasurable pain both to her family and this community.  

In April 2021, our Civil Rights Division opened the pattern or practice investigation that I have just referenced.

Shortly after we opened the investigation, an LMPD leader told the Department: “Breonna Taylor was a symptom of problems that we have had for years.”

The Justice Department’s findings in the report that we are releasing today bear that out.

The Department has concluded that there is reasonable cause to believe that Louisville Metro and LMPD engaged in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution. 

There is also reasonable cause to believe that they engage in conduct that violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Safe Streets Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

Specifically, the report finds that LMPD:

• Uses excessive force, including unjustified neck restraints and the unreasonable use of police dogs and tasers;
• Conducts searches based on invalid warrants;
• Unlawfully executes warrants without knocking and announcing;
• Unlawfully stops, searches, detains, and arrests people;
• Unlawfully discriminates against Black people in enforcement activities;
• Violates the rights of people engaged in protected speech critical of policing;
• And, along with Louisville Metro, discriminates against people with behavioral health disabilities when responding to them in crisis.

The Justice Department has also identified deficiencies in LMPD’s response to and investigation of domestic violence and sexual assault.

LMPD has relied heavily on pretextual traffic stops in Black neighborhoods.  

In these stops, officers use the pretense of making a stop for a minor traffic offense in order to investigate for other crimes.  

Some officers have demonstrated disrespect for the people they are sworn to protect. Some have videotaped themselves throwing drinks at pedestrians from their cars; insulted people with disabilities; and called Black people “monkeys,” “animal,” and “boy.”

This conduct is unacceptable. It is heartbreaking. It erodes the community trust necessary for effective policing. And it is an affront to the vast majority of  officers who put their lives on the line every day to serve Louisville with honor.

And it is an affront to the people of Louisville, who deserve better.

As the report states, most Metro employees and LMPD officers are dedicated public servants who work hard to promote public safety. But Louisville Metro and LMPD have failed to ensure that all employees uphold the Constitutional and statutory rights of the people in Louisville.

Louisville Metro and LMPD have also failed to provide police officers and other employees with the support and resources that they need to do their jobs effectively and lawfully. 

Our investigation uncovered deficient training, substandard facilities and equipment, and inadequate support for officer mental health and wellness. Police officers already have difficult jobs. These inadequacies have made those jobs even harder, and less safe.

Our report also describes unlawful law enforcement practices by LMPD patrol officers and by members of a specialized unit that was first called the VIPER Unit. The unit was later rebranded as Ninth Mobile Division and the Criminal Interdiction Division. 

Officers in this specialized unit frequently made pretextual traffic stops in Black neighborhoods. 

Federal and state courts have found that officers in the unit violated residents’ Fourth Amendment rights. 

The report concludes that the unit’s activities were part of an overall enforcement approach that resulted in significant and unlawful racial disparities. 

LMPD’s conduct has undermined its public safety mission and strained its relationship with the community it is meant to protect and serve. 

In an important step toward reform, I am pleased to announce that the City of Louisville has signed an Agreement in Principle with the Department of Justice. 

This agreement commits the City and LMPD to work with the Justice Department, the community, police officers, and other stakeholders to address the problems that we have identified. 

And this agreement commits us to negotiate a legally binding consent decree with an independent monitor.

Louisville Metro and LMPD have already instituted a number of changes through the settlement with the family of Breonna Taylor, as well as through other measures. 

The city enacted a law that prohibits LMPD from seeking no-knock warrants.

A limited pilot program has started sending behavioral health professionals to certain 911 calls. 

And the city has expanded community-based violence prevention services. 

LMPD has also announced plans to revamp its training, support for officers’ health and wellness, and internal auditing.  

These efforts are commendable, and we credit Louisville Metro and LMPD for acknowledging that change is necessary.  

But more must be done.

The Justice Department recommends 36 remedial measures that provide a starting framework for changes that are necessary to improve public safety, build community trust, and comply with the Constitution and federal law.

To the officers of LMPD: the Justice Department is acutely aware of the integral role that law enforcement officers play in our society and the dangers you face to keep your community safe. 

So, it is imperative that your police department sets you up for success.

Your department needs to provide you with clear policies and consistent training that explain constitutional boundaries and responsibilities. 

You need equipment and facilities that help you meet those responsibilities. 

And you need supervisors and a chain of command that enables you to achieve the highest standards of your profession.

To the people of Louisville: you have shown meaningful engagement on issues of reform.  

During the investigation, the Department met with many community members, including people who had encounters with the police, religious leaders, advocates, criminal defense attorneys, prosecutors, judges, and service providers.

I want to thank you for sharing your experiences with us. We could not have completed this investigation without your contributions.

And I ask that you continue to engage with these issues in the months ahead. Your involvement is critical to our success.

Together, we can make true progress and ensure the durability of reforms. Together, we can ensure that constitutional policing also results in safer communities.

Finally, to the career staff of the Civil Rights Division and of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky who conducted this investigation, thank you for your extraordinary hard work, which will make Louisville a better and better place for all of its residents.

As I mentioned when I announced the opening of this investigation, the Justice Department is charged with ensuring that the constitutional and federal statutory rights of the people are protected.

Congress authorized the Department to conduct pattern-or-practice investigations to help it fulfill this responsibility.

But those investigations, and the recommendations that ensue, do not only protect individuals’ civil rights. They also assist police departments in developing measures to increase transparency and accountability.

Those qualities are necessary to building trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve. And community trust is essential to making both communities and policing  safer.

The Justice Department looks forward to working with Louisville Metro and LMPD to achieve these ends.

I am now pleased to turn the podium over to Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta.