Lawyers uncover decades of lies spread by major organizations: 'Companies and their executives have endangered generations of Americans'

A memo about the effects of dirty fuel consumption outlines how New York prosecutors could charge Big Oil with reckless endangerment for its role in the climate crisis.

What's happening?

Public Citizen and Fair and Just Prosecution released the prosecution memorandum Oct. 17, and it lays out a case over 50 pages, the Guardian reported. Dozens of companies and their executives are responsible for much of the planet-warming pollution that has been released into the atmosphere by humans, and they have engaged in a disinformation campaign about it.

The industry has known it could cause enormous problems for Americans for over half a century but has pushed on as it reaped massive profits. In 1959 and 1982, Big Oil leaders became aware that New York and much of the East Coast could be flooded as a result of an increase in anthropogenic carbon dioxide, which would melt ice caps, the newspaper stated.

"It is clear that the actions of big oil, major fossil fuel companies and their executives have endangered generations of Americans," state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez said in a statement. "Big oil must be held accountable for their actions, and justice must be won for those who've suffered the devastating impacts of climate-related disasters."

The memo says the conduct was "criminal" and "not just amoral."

Why is this important?

The rising global temperature is the result of toxic gases that envelop Earth like a blanket and trap heat. Carbon dioxide, methane, and other pollutants that lead to planet-warming are produced by the burning of coal, gas, and oil, and this exacerbates natural disasters such as hurricanes and heatwaves.

In 2012 and 2021, Hurricanes Sandy and Ida devastated the Empire State. There were also heatwaves in 2023 that killed hundreds of people in Arizona, leading to a similar Public Citizen memo that argued prosecutors there could file reckless manslaughter or second-degree murder charges against Big Oil.

"Reckless endangerment statutes criminalize reckless conduct that creates a risk of injuring or killing someone," senior policy counsel Aaron Regunberg told the Guardian. "So proving this crime doesn't require the same demonstration of causation as offenses like homicide or assault, where prosecutors need to prove that a defendant's conduct actually caused a specific victim's injury or death."

What's being done about Big Oil's pollution?

The prosecution of oil and gas companies is gaining traction as a way to rein in the industry and help clear a path to a cleaner, safer future. Likely U.S. voters support such action in polls, according to the Guardian, and the cause is a way for citizens to stand up to giant corporations.

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Other ways to create change in this area center on divesting from dirty energy sources. You can switch to an electric vehicle from an internal combustion engine vehicle, cut your consumption of plastic, or get an induction stovetop.

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