The second time around in U.S. District Judge Richard Haik’s court turned out to be quite costly for Houston-based Citgo Petroleum Corp. Haik recently hiked Citgo’s civil penalty for a massive 2006 oil spill in Louisiana from $6 million to $81 million after the case was remanded back to his court. The case centered on Citgo’s actions related to the discharge of a large amount of oil into the waterways surrounding Citgo’s Lake Charles, Louisiana, treatment plant that resulted in damage to the environment and local community.
This large increase in the penalty occurred when Haik, the presiding judge for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana (Lafayette Division), reviewed the case again after it was sent back by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. On Sept. 11, 2013, the Fifth Circuit vacated the civil penalty award imposed by Haik on Sept. 29, 2011, and remanded the matter for further proceedings. Specifically, Haik was ordered to reassess the issues of economic benefit and the civil penalty. The Fifth Circuit also suggested he re-examine the issue of gross negligence and Citgo’s history of prior violations.
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