A judge denied motions to waive the criminal indictment against Plains All American Pipeline and James Buchanan, the company’s environmental and regulatory compliance specialist, for alleged violations of state law in connection with the May 2015 Refugio oil spill.
The Plains All American indictment comprises 46 counts of criminal charges, including four felony charges for spilling oil and hazardous substances into state waters and 36 misdemeanor charges related to the spill’s environmental impacts. Buchanan, who originally faced three misdemeanor charges, now faces two.
Plains All American’s defense counsel made five motions to waive the indictment, but on Feb. 21, Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Jean Dandona denied them, according to a press release from the District Attorney’s office.
The Refugio oil spill occurred when a corroded pipeline from Plains All American released 142,800 gallons of crude oil into the ocean at Refugio State Beach, killing at least 195 birds and 106 mammals, according to Kristen Monsell, staff attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity.
Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley said in a news release last year that evidence for indictment against Plains All American came from several local and state agencies.
“The indictment was a response to the evidence presented and speaks to the alleged criminal culpability of both the corporation and an individual who are alleged to have caused harm to Santa Barbara County’s magnificent natural surroundings and death to some of its majestic wildlife,” Dudley said in the release.
But Andy Caldwell, of the Coalition of Labor, Agriculture, and Business, said the District Attorney shouldn’t have pressed criminal charges against Plains All American.
“There’s a difference between accidents and crime,” Caldwell told the Sun.
He said he saw the Refugio spill as no more than an accident, and while the company should be subject to fines for the spill, it shouldn’t face prosecution.
“I think they want to punish them, is what’s really going on here,” Caldwell said. “I feel this is punishment as much as it is prosecution.”
The case is set for readiness and settlement conference on Thursday, March 2.
This article appears in Mar 2-9, 2017.