NCJ Number
141790
Date Published
Unknown
Length
52 pages
Annotation
This report highlights some novel methods that prosecutors have used to prosecute criminal environmental offenders and compares current State laws on environmental offenses.
Abstract
Several State district attorneys have focused their attention on felony littering laws, and at least one has experimented with attempted homicide offenses, to circumvent the rigid regulatory framework of environmental laws that have hindered the efforts of prosecutors. These States can serve as a legislative model for other states hoping to eliminate the regulatory and scientific hurdles typical of environmental regulation. These models should help bring environmental law enforcement into the same situation as any other criminal enforcement cases. One of the most important Federal laws in this area is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which regulates the treatment, storage, transportation, and disposal of hazardous waste. The Federal law and most State laws share three basic elements: that a person disposed of a waste, that the waste was hazardous, and that the person knowingly or negligently disposed of the waste at an unpermitted location or one otherwise prohibited by law. Some prosecutors have used a strike force to enforce the laws. Notes, chart, and 35 references