Federal Judge Throws Out Criminal Case Against Oil Companies for Killing Birds
by Justin Shubow
Posted January 25, 2012, 7:09 PM
The Wall Street Journal reports that a federal court in North Dakota dismissed a complaint filed by the Obama Justice Department against three oil companies under the Migratory Bird Act:
Continental Resources, Brigham Oil & Gas and Newfield Production Company were accused of causing the deaths of six Mallard ducks and one Say's Phoebe, which had waded in oil pits. The criminal charges carried fines and potential prison sentences.
In a ruling that can only be called withering, district Judge Daniel Hovland contrasted "incidental and unintended" deaths during "legal, commercially-useful activity" with "hunting and poaching." The court rejected U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon's "expansive interpretation of the law" because it "would yield absurd results": If the government's case carried the day, "many everyday activities become unlawful—and subject to criminal sanctions—when they cause the death of pigeons, starlings, and other common birds."
The newspaper had previously claimed that the Obama administration was selectively prosecuting the Migratory Bird Act against oil companies but not companies generating energy via wind turbines, which kill many birds.
For some of the Federalist Society's previous examination of overcriminalization in federal law, see here. On January 31st, FedSoc's Triangle Lawyers Chapter will be hosting a talk on the subject in Raleigh, North Carolina. The guest speaker is John S. Baker, Jr., Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Catholic University of America Law School and Emeritus Professor at Louisiana State University Law School.