Tag: Dennis Farrell

Former Freedom Industries Executive's Financial Information Being Scrutinized By Federal Judge

A judge says he wants more information before he’ll approve a class-action settlement stemming from a 2014 chemical spill in West Virginia that contaminated drinking water supplies.

The case involves Kanawha Valley residents and businesses and two former top officials from Freedom Industries.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that U.S. District Judge John Copenhaver told lawyers in the case Friday that he wants more details about the finances of one of the former Freedom officials — longtime company co-owner Dennis Farrell.

The judge also wants more details about whether Farrell and former Freedom President Gary Southern remain targeted in any other lawsuits that also could be settled.

The judge told the attorneys to get back to him about those matters by May 13.

Ex-Freedom Industries Owner Sentenced to 30 Days in Jail, $20,000 Fine

A former executive of a chemical storage facility in West Virginia has been sentenced to 30 days in jail and order to pay a $20,000 fine. The charges stemmed a January 2014 chemical spill that left some 300,000 area residents without water for days.

Former Freedom Industries owner Dennis Farrell will serve time for federal pollution violations.

Four other ex-Freedom officials have been sentenced to probation and ordered to pay fines.

Ex-company President Gary Southern is scheduled to be sentenced next week.

Federal prosecutors brought the case against the company and its top executives after an estimated 7,500 gallons of a coal cleaning chemical leaked from storage tanks and into the Elk River.

The company filed for bankruptcy eight days after the spill. It’s been fined $900,000, although a federal judge said that fine was symbolic due to outstanding debts.

Ex-Executive Due for Sentencing in Federal Court

A former Freedom Industries executive is due in federal court for sentencing on a pollution charge in a chemical spill that fouled the drinking water supply of 300,000 West Virginians.

Dennis Farrell pleaded guilty in August to a deal that includes up to two years in prison and a $200,000 fine. His sentencing is set for Thursday in Charleston.

Four other ex-Freedom officials have been sentenced to probation and ordered to pay fines. Ex-company President Gary Southern is scheduled to be sentenced next week.

In January 2014, the leak of coal-cleaning chemicals into the water supply spurred a tap-water ban across nine counties for days.

The company, which filed bankruptcy eight days after the spill, was fined $900,000, although a federal judge said the fine was symbolic.

Sentencing Set for Ex-Execs in W.Va. Chemical Spill

Six former Freedom Industries officials are set to be sentenced this month on pollution charges two years after a chemical spill into the Elk River in Charleston fouled the drinking water supply of 300,000 West Virginians.

The first to be sentenced are ex-Freedom plant manager Michael Burdette on Monday and environmental consultant Robert Reynolds on Wednesday. Each faces up to a year in prison and a minimum $2,500 fine.

The company itself faces up to $900,000 in fines. Sentencings also are later this month for ex-Freedom officials William Tis, Charles Herzing, Dennis Farrell and, lastly, Gary Southern.

Southern faces the harshest penalty: up to three years in prison and $300,000 in fines.

Ex-U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says the spill was “a wake-up call” to the vulnerability of tap water systems.

Two Ex-Freedom Executives Agree to Settlement

Two former Freedom Industries executives have agreed to a settlement in a class-action lawsuit stemming from a chemical spill that tainted tap water for 300,000 people.

Under the proposed settlement, former Freedom President Gary Southern would pay $350,000 and former executive Dennis Farrell would pay $50,000.

A motion filed Wednesday by the plaintiffs asks the U.S. District Court in Charleston to give preliminary approval to the settlement and schedule a hearing on final approval. The plaintiffs are residents and businesses affected by the January 2014 spill of coal-cleaning chemicals from a Freedom site in Charleston.

Southern and Farrell awaiting sentencing on federal pollution charges. They are among several defendants named in the lawsuit.

Freedom filed for bankruptcy following the spill. A federal bankruptcy judge approved a liquidation plan in October.

Dennis Farrell Pleads Guilty to Role in Chemical Spill

One of the final executives charged in a chemical spill that contaminated West Virginia’s biggest drinking water supply has pleaded guilty.

In federal court Tuesday in Charleston, former Freedom Industries executive Dennis Farrell pleaded guilty in front of Judge Thomas Johnston.

The plea deal calls for a sentence of 30 days to two years in prison, as well as a fine up to $200,000.

The bankrupt company and four ex-officials have already pleaded guilty to pollution charges. Ex-Freedom President Gary Southern has a hearing Wednesday, where he is expected to plead guilty.

Farrell and Southern had both previously pleaded not guilty.

In January 2014, a Freedom tank leaked coal-cleaning chemicals into the water supply for 300,000 people, spurring a ban on using tap water for up to 10 days.

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