Category Archives: litigation

Class Action Suit Filed Against F-150 EcoBoost Engines for Stalling

Posted on 20 February 2013 by Ken Zino

More than $500,000,000 in damages is requested by 100 plaintiffs in what could be a prolonged image-damaging class action lawsuit about Ford’s claimed fuel economy breakthrough. Ford has issued two service bulletins to dealers about the problem, before redesigning the intake system for the 2013 model year. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, litigation, safety | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Transocean Pleads Guilty of Environmental Crimes in Gulf Oil Spill. $400 Million in Penalties for its Role in Deepwater Horizon Disaster

Posted on 14 February 2013 by Ken Zino

Transocean Deepwater pleaded guilty today to a violation of the Clean Water Act for its illegal conduct leading to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. The drilling company was sentenced to pay $400 million in criminal fines and penalties, Attorney General Holder announced today. Continue reading →

Posted in energy, fools 'n frauds, litigation, news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

More Spills in Gulf of Mexico as U.S. Files Suit against ATP Oil

Posted on 11 February 2013 by Ken Zino

Today the United States filed suit against ATP Oil & Gas Corporation and ATP Infrastructure Partners for civil penalties and injunctive relief under the Clean Water Act and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. The complaint alleges unlawful discharges of oil and banned chemical dispersants from the defendants’ floating oil and gas production platform, the ATP Innovator, into the Gulf of Mexico. The drilling rig is operating 45 nautical miles offshore of southeastern Louisiana. Continue reading →

Posted in energy, fools 'n frauds, litigation, news | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

BP Sentenced to Pay $4 Billion for Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Crimes

Posted on 29 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Nevertheless, the penalty remains a small fraction of the actual damage caused by pumping at least 5 billion gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This means that BP is paying less than $1 a gallon for the criminal spill and destruction of the environment. Continue reading →

Posted in fools 'n frauds, litigation, news | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Court of Appeals Throws Out EPA Cellulosic Mandate for Refiners

Posted on 26 January 2013 by Ken Zino

While the enabling legislation was noble at least in its publicly stated intent – the U.S. sends over $1,000,000 a minute to oil exporting nations, many of whom are hostile to us – it was in the end a sordid tale of special interests feeding at the public trough. Worse, the legislation dictated the types and amounts of fuel to be used to gain energy independence – in effect a dreaded and ineffective design standard – instead of a performance standard that sets broad goals and lets industry and the marketplace work out the issues. Continue reading →

Posted in alternative fuels, auto news, litigation, news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Second Alabama Cop to Serve Time for I-65 Motorist Thefts

Posted on 23 January 2013 by Ken Zino

A second Alabama police officer has been sentenced to serve time because of his thefts from motorists on I-65. Former Fort Deposit police officer Carlos Tyson Bennett, 37, was sentenced to 37 months in prison, two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $500 in restitution. Bennett stole money from motorists during traffic stops with another ex Fort Deposit cop, Jessie Alan Fuller, on Interstate 65 in 2009. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, fools 'n frauds, insurance, litigation, news analysis, people | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Used Motor Vehicle Dealers Indicted for Odometer Tampering

Posted on 18 January 2013 by Ken Zino

A federal grand jury in Philadelphia charged Kyle Novitsky, 45, and Judith Aloe, 52, both of North Miami Beach, Florida with making false odometer statements, securities fraud and conspiracy, the Justice Department announced today. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Virginia Man Jailed for Selling Counterfeit GM Diagnostic Equipment

Posted on 11 January 2013 by Ken Zino

A Virginia man was sentenced today in federal court to serve one year and one day in prison for selling counterfeit General Motors automotive diagnostic equipment used by mechanics to identify problems with GM vehicles. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ex Ford EVP David Thursfield Sentenced to Jail over Divorce

Posted on 6 January 2013 by Ken Zino

David Thursfield, a former executive vice president of Ford Motor Company and then a top Cerberus executive, has been sentenced to two years in jail in Great Britain for allegedly hiding assets during a contentious divorce settlement in 2005. Continue reading →

Posted in litigation, people | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Transocean Pleads Guilty in Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. Criminal and Civil Fines Set at a Record $1.4 Billion by Department of Justice

Posted on 3 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Transocean Deepwater, the operator of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, will plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act and pay a total of $1.4 billion in civil and criminal fines for its conduct during the largest oil spill in U.S. history. Continue reading →

Posted in environment, fools 'n frauds, litigation, news, transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Alaskan Contractor to Serve Time for Dumping Hazardous Waste

Posted on 2 January 2013 by Ken Zino

The former owner of a road and parking lot painting and striping business in Anchorage, Alaska will serve time in prison for dumping hazardous waste. William Duran Vizzerra, Jr., 43, was sentenced by Chief Judge Ralph R. Beistline to 15 months in prison. The court also ordered Vizzerra to pay $395,319 in restitution to two victims. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, environment, fools 'n frauds, litigation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Toyota Settles Lawsuits for $1.1 Billion and Will Modify Millions of Vehicles with Electronically Controlled Gas Pedals to Stop Runaways

Posted on 27 December 2012 by Ken Zino

In an engineering lapse of monumental consequences that included several deaths, the computer programming on affected vehicles when confronted with both brake and accelerator inputs did not favor the brake input for its electronic engine controls. Such over-ride software is in widespread use at other automakers. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, engineering, litigation, news analysis, recalls, safety | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Toyota to Pay Record $17.35 Million for Lexus Safety Cover-Up

Posted on 18 December 2012 by Ken Zino

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced that Toyota Motor Corporation would pay $17.35 million, the maximum fine, in response to the agency’s assertion that the automaker once again failed to report a safety defect to the federal government in a timely manner. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation, safety | Leave a comment

International Auto Fraud Ring Busted in Four Countries

Posted on 6 December 2012 by Ken Zino

Law enforcement officials in Romania, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom and Canada arrested six Romanian nationals today for their alleged involvement in a sophisticated multimillion-dollar auto fraud scheme. The U.S. Department of Justice said the defendants were responsible for saturating Internet marketplace websites including eBay, Cars.com, AutoTrader.com and CycleTrader.com with detailed advertisements for cars, motorcycles, boats and other high-value items generally priced in the $10,000 to $45,000 range. Unbeknownst to the buyers, however, the merchandise did not exist. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Louisiana Used Car Dealer Sentenced to Prison for Odometer Fraud

Posted on 29 November 2012 by Ken Zino

Beau Michael Guidry of Baton Rouge, Louisiana was busted flat today by a U.S. District Court judge who sentenced the used car dealer to 20 months in prison for rolling back the odometers on used cars. Moreover, the court ordered Guidry to pay $72,805.51 in restitution to the victims of his crimes. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment