New York
City Awarded $40 million in Asbestos lawsuit
New York Jury Awards $16 million to three railroad workers in mesothelioma lawsuit
Lawyers File Mesothelioma Lawsuit for Third Family Member
These are just a sampling of recent headlines about asbestos and mesothelioma lawsuits in the state of New York. The numbers may sound outrageous to those who have never dealt with the realities of watching a loved one die of mesothelioma, or seen the toll that it takes on a family’s finances and future. The reality is that the treatments for the deadly disease can easily cost a family hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
The reality is that hundreds of people are diagnosed with mesothelioma annually. The reality is that the enormous industries that used asbestos knowingly exposed workers to a toxic substance - and hid the dangers from them and from the general public for decades. The very sad reality is that if those companies had made public the things that they knew and provided even the simplest of protections for their workers, thousands of husbands, fathers, brothers, wives and sisters would not have died a painful, ugly death from one of the most virulent forms of cancer known.
What is Mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is caused by exposure to asbestos fibers. It is, overall, a very rare form of cancer, but its incidence rises dramatically among those who work or have worked around asbestos. There have also been cases of mesothelioma among family members of those who worked with asbestos, and among residents of areas where factories and processing plants processed and mined asbestos and turned it into products that were sold nationally and internationally.
What is the basis of mesothelioma lawsuits?
Industry leaders have known since the early 1900s that exposure to asbestos dust often resulted in serious lung diseases. These companies chose to hide the dangers rather than protect their workers and the community from those dangers. Some of the larger companies went so far as to have their employees examined by company doctors and instructed the doctors to withhold diagnoses of lung disease from those who were ill.
Another company rejected a researcher’s suggestion that all workers who handled asbestos wear inexpensive paper filter masks because it would be bad for the company image and worry the workers. The history of deliberate neglect to preserve profits is documented in reports, memos, letters and files exchanged among the top executives and decision makers in those companies.
It is this history that is the basis of most mesothelioma lawsuits - that the industry knowingly and willfully ignored the knowledge of danger and put all of their workers at risk so that they could continue to profit from the sale of the dangerous substance. The fact that they knew of the danger and deliberately hid it from the public, their workers and the government makes them liable not only for compensation of medical expenses to those that were harmed, but for punitive damages as well.
Who is affected by mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma has been definitely linked to exposure to asbestos. There is no other known cause, though there are certain factors that can increase the risk of developing mesothelioma. Workers on job sites that handled asbestos in high quantities are most at risk, but there have been cases of mesothelioma traced back to a limited, even single, exposure to asbestos dust. New York has a high concentration of those industries, and many of the companies that manufactured products made with asbestos are located in New York, and for that reason, there is a high concentration of mesothelioma cases in the state.
If you worked at a New York shipyard, power plant or construction site at any time through the 1970s and early 1980s, it’s very likely that you were exposed to asbestos dust. If your job involved working with cement pipes, wallboard, insulation, brake shoes, elevator brake shoes, fireproofing materials, fire curtains, adhesive compounds and many other products used in the construction industry, you may have been exposed to asbestos. If a family member worked in any of those industries or with those products, you may have been exposed to asbestos.
What are your rights in a mesothelioma lawsuit?
If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, you can bring a legal claim against those who were responsible for your exposure. Contact a top mesothelioma lawyer in New York today to discuss your case and the options available to you.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Biogen Rejects Legal Immunity, Clinton Plea to Treat Dying Man
By Laurence Viele Davidson and Bob Van Voris
Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Biogen Idec Inc. rejected an offer of legal immunity, a plea from former President Bill Clinton and U.S. regulators' approval to give a last-chance cancer drug to lawyer Fred Baron, the former finance chairman of John Edwards's presidential campaign.
Mark Lanier, who negotiated a $4.85 billion settlement with Merck & Co. over its painkiller Vioxx, is advising Baron's family and pledged not to sue Biogen. Baron, 61, is dying from a blood cancer and has days to live, his son Andrew said in a letter sent to Biogen this week. Lanier said the family will sign waivers if something goes wrong with the drug, Tysabri.
``I have promised to conflict myself out of any future lawsuits,'' Lanier said in an interview today. After his Vioxx victories, including a $253 million award against Merck in 2005, ``I have a lot of currency in the pharmaceutical industry.''
Litigation isn't a concern, Biogen spokeswoman Naomi Aoki said today. Tysabri is in the early stage of a clinical trial to treat multiple myeloma, the cancer Baron has, and there is no evidence yet it will save his life, she said. Biogen doesn't want to compromise the trial results and hinder its ability to win regulatory approval to market the drug, Aoki said.
``We have a scientific rationale for why we think it might be effective,'' she said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Biogen to give Tysabri to Baron under a rule for compassionate use. The FDA is in contact with both Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Biogen and the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota, where Baron is being treated and which is helping to conduct the trial, Aoki and FDA spokeswoman Karen Riley said.
Clinton, Armstrong Pleas
Clinton, seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, himself a cancer survivor, and U.S. Senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry or their staff members have called Biogen or Chief Executive Officer James Mullen to plead Baron's case. His doctor, who already is treating one patient with Tysabri, also asked for permission to give the drug to Baron, his son said in the letter sent to trial lawyers, the media and Mullen.
Upon receiving an emergency use request from a treating doctor, the FDA works directly with the health professionals involved and the company that owns the drug, Riley said.
Biogen decided not to let Baron use the drug because he doesn't fit all the criteria for the clinical trial, Aoki said. He does qualify for at least one, in that his disease is in its end stage, she said. Tysabri is approved to treat multiple sclerosis and Crohn's disease.
Biogen fell 22 cents to $42.24 at 1:36 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading.
Baron, of Dallas, is a founder of Baron & Budd, a law firm that recovered billions of dollars by suing manufacturers and industrial users of asbestos, which is linked to lung diseases and mesothelioma, a fatal cancer. Baron & Budd also represented clients who claimed injuries from drugs and toxic chemicals.
Baron lobbied against tort reform in Congress and donates campaign funds to the Democratic Party.
In August, the Dallas Morning News and New York Times reported on Baron's role in helping to conceal Edwards's affair with Rielle Hunter, who produced videos for Edwards's presidential campaign. Baron told the Morning News that he paid to help Hunter move away from North Carolina at a time when reporters were pursuing rumors of the affair.
Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Biogen Idec Inc. rejected an offer of legal immunity, a plea from former President Bill Clinton and U.S. regulators' approval to give a last-chance cancer drug to lawyer Fred Baron, the former finance chairman of John Edwards's presidential campaign.
Mark Lanier, who negotiated a $4.85 billion settlement with Merck & Co. over its painkiller Vioxx, is advising Baron's family and pledged not to sue Biogen. Baron, 61, is dying from a blood cancer and has days to live, his son Andrew said in a letter sent to Biogen this week. Lanier said the family will sign waivers if something goes wrong with the drug, Tysabri.
``I have promised to conflict myself out of any future lawsuits,'' Lanier said in an interview today. After his Vioxx victories, including a $253 million award against Merck in 2005, ``I have a lot of currency in the pharmaceutical industry.''
Litigation isn't a concern, Biogen spokeswoman Naomi Aoki said today. Tysabri is in the early stage of a clinical trial to treat multiple myeloma, the cancer Baron has, and there is no evidence yet it will save his life, she said. Biogen doesn't want to compromise the trial results and hinder its ability to win regulatory approval to market the drug, Aoki said.
``We have a scientific rationale for why we think it might be effective,'' she said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Biogen to give Tysabri to Baron under a rule for compassionate use. The FDA is in contact with both Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Biogen and the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota, where Baron is being treated and which is helping to conduct the trial, Aoki and FDA spokeswoman Karen Riley said.
Clinton, Armstrong Pleas
Clinton, seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, himself a cancer survivor, and U.S. Senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry or their staff members have called Biogen or Chief Executive Officer James Mullen to plead Baron's case. His doctor, who already is treating one patient with Tysabri, also asked for permission to give the drug to Baron, his son said in the letter sent to trial lawyers, the media and Mullen.
Upon receiving an emergency use request from a treating doctor, the FDA works directly with the health professionals involved and the company that owns the drug, Riley said.
Biogen decided not to let Baron use the drug because he doesn't fit all the criteria for the clinical trial, Aoki said. He does qualify for at least one, in that his disease is in its end stage, she said. Tysabri is approved to treat multiple sclerosis and Crohn's disease.
Biogen fell 22 cents to $42.24 at 1:36 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading.
Baron, of Dallas, is a founder of Baron & Budd, a law firm that recovered billions of dollars by suing manufacturers and industrial users of asbestos, which is linked to lung diseases and mesothelioma, a fatal cancer. Baron & Budd also represented clients who claimed injuries from drugs and toxic chemicals.
Baron lobbied against tort reform in Congress and donates campaign funds to the Democratic Party.
In August, the Dallas Morning News and New York Times reported on Baron's role in helping to conceal Edwards's affair with Rielle Hunter, who produced videos for Edwards's presidential campaign. Baron told the Morning News that he paid to help Hunter move away from North Carolina at a time when reporters were pursuing rumors of the affair.
Asuragen Quiet on Newly Launched miRNA Dx, Plans Formal Marketing Push for Next Month
Asuragen may have launched its first microRNA-based diagnostic earlier this year, but the company has decided to wait until November to kick off a formal marketing campaign as it conducts additional validation work, a company official told RNAi News this week.
Asuragen announced in late April that the test, which is designed to differentiate pancreatitis from pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in either frozen or formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples, would become available in May (see RNAi News, 4/24/2008).
And while the test is available to clinicians who contact the company, Asuragen has been quiet about it, not even publicizing it on its website. But according to Carol Berry, vice president and general manager of Asuragen Pharmacogenomic Services, this is set to change next month when the company expects to wrap up work validating the test in tissue obtained through fine-needle aspiration.
Berry said that Asuragen decided to introduce the test in its current form earlier this year because of “tremendous interest” from clinicians, as well as strong data from a validation study of 60 frozen clinical samples in which it showed a sensitivity of 95.2 percent and a specificity of 94.9 percent
At the same, she said, “we wanted to … translate [the product] into a fine-needle aspirate-type test. We’re in the midst of validating that [work] with a clinical partner.” She declined to name the partner.
Once that work is complete, the company expects to begin a significant marketing push, which will include promoting it at the Association of Molecular Pathology annual meeting, which begins in late October, Berry said.
Berry confirmed that Asuragen intends to continue offering the diagnostic through its own CLIA-certified laboratory.
Fine-Needle Aspirant
Asuragen’s efforts to prepare the pancreatic cancer diagnostic for use with fine-needle aspiration specimens will contribute to a significant body of data in this area that the firm has already accumulated.
In June, researchers from Asuragen presented data at the Joint Meeting of the European Pancreatic Club and the International Association of Pancreatology showing that differentially expressed miRNAs in both FFPE and fine-needle aspiration biopsies of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma could be used to distinguish between malignant and benign disease.
“We wanted to … translate [the product] into a fine needle aspirate-type test. We’re in the midst of validating that [work] with [an undisclosed] clinical partner.”
According to the abstract from the presentation, “expression analysis of a few specific miRNAs enabled segregation of PDAC specimens from chronic pancreatitis and normal pancreas tissue specimens … [indicating] that miRNAs in combination with [a fine-needle aspiration] biopsy procedure could aid pathological evaluation of suspicious cases and become a valuable asset in definitive diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.”
Earlier this year at the University of Miami’s Winter Symposium, which focused on regulatory RNA in biology and human health, Asuragen researchers and collaborators presented data showing that altered expression of miR-217 and miR-196a could be used to distinguish benign pancreatic tissue samples from malignant ones obtained through fine needle aspiration.
According to that data, 13 patients with suspected pancreatic masses underwent endoscopic fine-needle aspiration biopsies, while normal pancreatic tissue specimens were collected ex vivo from resected pancreases.
“We observed that the quantitative expression analysis of selected miRNAs and mRNAs in PDAC and normal pancreas [fine needle aspiration] samples correlated well with the changes observed in respective frozen tissue samples,” the investigators wrote in a poster presented at the symposium. “In addition, we verified that altered expression of miR-196a and miR-217 enabled clear segregation of PDAC [fine needle aspiration] specimens from non-malignant … samples.”
miRNA Dx Space Heats Up
Although Asuragen hit a major milestone by being the first to get its miRNA diagnostic to the market, the company won’t be alone for long as peers Rosetta Genomics and Exiqon prepare to launch their own diagnostics this year through their own recently acquired CLIA labs.
Rosetta has perhaps the broadest miRNA diagnostic pipeline of all the major players in the space, with at least nine products under development.
The company’s most advanced test, miRview Squamous, is designed to differentiate squamous from non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer, and was cleared for sale by the New York State Department of Health Clinical Laboratory Evaluation Program in July (see RNAi News, 7/24/2008). It is slated for commercialization this year.
Two other tests, one for determining the source of cancers of unknown primary origin, called miRview Mets, and one for differentiating lung cancer from mesothelioma, called miRview Meso, are set for introduction next year.
Diagnostics for predicting response to ovarian cancer treatment, for gauging the risk of gastric cancer recurrence, and for differentiating small from non-small cell lung cancer are expected to reach the market in 2009 and 2010.
The newest additions to Rosetta’s development-stage diagnostic lineup are tests designed to detect colon cancer by using an miRNA signature that can be identified in blood serum; a test designed to determine the risk of bladder cancer becoming invasive; and one created to predict the risk of colon cancer recurrence. The company has not said when it plans to debut these products.
Exiqon, meanwhile, is developing miRNA-based diagnostics that will replace a line of cellular-based extreme drug resistance tests for a variety of cancers, including colon, breast, ovarian, and lung, that were developed by oncology-testing services provider Oncotech, which Exiqon acquired early this year (see RNAi News, 4/10/2008). The company is also developing a test for determining the source of cancers of unknown primary origin.
Exiqon aims to have its first diagnostic on the US market this year, but has yet to disclose its indication.
Asuragen announced in late April that the test, which is designed to differentiate pancreatitis from pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in either frozen or formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples, would become available in May (see RNAi News, 4/24/2008).
And while the test is available to clinicians who contact the company, Asuragen has been quiet about it, not even publicizing it on its website. But according to Carol Berry, vice president and general manager of Asuragen Pharmacogenomic Services, this is set to change next month when the company expects to wrap up work validating the test in tissue obtained through fine-needle aspiration.
Berry said that Asuragen decided to introduce the test in its current form earlier this year because of “tremendous interest” from clinicians, as well as strong data from a validation study of 60 frozen clinical samples in which it showed a sensitivity of 95.2 percent and a specificity of 94.9 percent
At the same, she said, “we wanted to … translate [the product] into a fine-needle aspirate-type test. We’re in the midst of validating that [work] with a clinical partner.” She declined to name the partner.
Once that work is complete, the company expects to begin a significant marketing push, which will include promoting it at the Association of Molecular Pathology annual meeting, which begins in late October, Berry said.
Berry confirmed that Asuragen intends to continue offering the diagnostic through its own CLIA-certified laboratory.
Fine-Needle Aspirant
Asuragen’s efforts to prepare the pancreatic cancer diagnostic for use with fine-needle aspiration specimens will contribute to a significant body of data in this area that the firm has already accumulated.
In June, researchers from Asuragen presented data at the Joint Meeting of the European Pancreatic Club and the International Association of Pancreatology showing that differentially expressed miRNAs in both FFPE and fine-needle aspiration biopsies of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma could be used to distinguish between malignant and benign disease.
“We wanted to … translate [the product] into a fine needle aspirate-type test. We’re in the midst of validating that [work] with [an undisclosed] clinical partner.”
According to the abstract from the presentation, “expression analysis of a few specific miRNAs enabled segregation of PDAC specimens from chronic pancreatitis and normal pancreas tissue specimens … [indicating] that miRNAs in combination with [a fine-needle aspiration] biopsy procedure could aid pathological evaluation of suspicious cases and become a valuable asset in definitive diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.”
Earlier this year at the University of Miami’s Winter Symposium, which focused on regulatory RNA in biology and human health, Asuragen researchers and collaborators presented data showing that altered expression of miR-217 and miR-196a could be used to distinguish benign pancreatic tissue samples from malignant ones obtained through fine needle aspiration.
According to that data, 13 patients with suspected pancreatic masses underwent endoscopic fine-needle aspiration biopsies, while normal pancreatic tissue specimens were collected ex vivo from resected pancreases.
“We observed that the quantitative expression analysis of selected miRNAs and mRNAs in PDAC and normal pancreas [fine needle aspiration] samples correlated well with the changes observed in respective frozen tissue samples,” the investigators wrote in a poster presented at the symposium. “In addition, we verified that altered expression of miR-196a and miR-217 enabled clear segregation of PDAC [fine needle aspiration] specimens from non-malignant … samples.”
miRNA Dx Space Heats Up
Although Asuragen hit a major milestone by being the first to get its miRNA diagnostic to the market, the company won’t be alone for long as peers Rosetta Genomics and Exiqon prepare to launch their own diagnostics this year through their own recently acquired CLIA labs.
Rosetta has perhaps the broadest miRNA diagnostic pipeline of all the major players in the space, with at least nine products under development.
The company’s most advanced test, miRview Squamous, is designed to differentiate squamous from non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer, and was cleared for sale by the New York State Department of Health Clinical Laboratory Evaluation Program in July (see RNAi News, 7/24/2008). It is slated for commercialization this year.
Two other tests, one for determining the source of cancers of unknown primary origin, called miRview Mets, and one for differentiating lung cancer from mesothelioma, called miRview Meso, are set for introduction next year.
Diagnostics for predicting response to ovarian cancer treatment, for gauging the risk of gastric cancer recurrence, and for differentiating small from non-small cell lung cancer are expected to reach the market in 2009 and 2010.
The newest additions to Rosetta’s development-stage diagnostic lineup are tests designed to detect colon cancer by using an miRNA signature that can be identified in blood serum; a test designed to determine the risk of bladder cancer becoming invasive; and one created to predict the risk of colon cancer recurrence. The company has not said when it plans to debut these products.
Exiqon, meanwhile, is developing miRNA-based diagnostics that will replace a line of cellular-based extreme drug resistance tests for a variety of cancers, including colon, breast, ovarian, and lung, that were developed by oncology-testing services provider Oncotech, which Exiqon acquired early this year (see RNAi News, 4/10/2008). The company is also developing a test for determining the source of cancers of unknown primary origin.
Exiqon aims to have its first diagnostic on the US market this year, but has yet to disclose its indication.
'Fibro' families latest asbestos victims
FIONA Watterson remembers playing with bits of fibro brought home by her carpenter father when she was a young child growing up in Southport.
Ms Watterson, 44, now realises that it was most likely this contact with asbestos-laden fibro in the 1960s that caused her to contract mesothelioma.
She is one of a younger generation of victims of asbestos – the children of those who worked with fibro and brought home asbestos fibres on clothing or who renovated fibro homes.
Lawyer Thady Blundell of Turner Freeman, who is representing Ms Watterson in a compensation claim, said more people in their 30s, 40s and 50s were now being diagnosed with mesothelioma.
"It does seem to be on the increase," Mr Blundell said.
"This is just the start of another wave of victims. The first wave was the miners, people working with these products in the building industry was the second wave, and the third wave are the wives and children inadvertently exposed in the domestic setting."
Ms Watterson, who has two sons aged 13 and 16, has had two doses of chemotherapy since being diagnosed with the cancer, caused by asbestos, in August.
She had been healthy before she began struggling to breathe in June.
"I was really stunned when they told me – I didn't know what to think," Ms Watterson, of Arundel, said.
She remembers her father storing sheets of fibro under their home, and she and her brother and sister playing hide-and-seek under there.
"We played with everything. We used to roll marbles down the fibro."
Lawyer Carl Hughes, of Slater and Gordon, said about 10 per cent of asbestos cases he dealt with involved women who contracted asbestosis or mesothelioma after handling their husbands' work clothes.
Brisbane mother-of-two Rita Charlton, 63, is paying the price for being a good wife back in the 1960s and '70s.
When her husband, Michael, would come home from work covered in dust, Mrs Charlton would sweep up whatever he trailed into the house and pop his clothes in the wash.
Today Mrs Charlton has asbestosis, cancer of the right lung and suspected mesothelioma – believed to be from asbestos fibres carried on her husband's work clothes.
"I always shook things out and I guess I breathed it in," she said.
Slater and Gordon is seeking compensation for Mrs Charlton from companies that employed Mr Hughes.
Ms Watterson, 44, now realises that it was most likely this contact with asbestos-laden fibro in the 1960s that caused her to contract mesothelioma.
She is one of a younger generation of victims of asbestos – the children of those who worked with fibro and brought home asbestos fibres on clothing or who renovated fibro homes.
Lawyer Thady Blundell of Turner Freeman, who is representing Ms Watterson in a compensation claim, said more people in their 30s, 40s and 50s were now being diagnosed with mesothelioma.
"It does seem to be on the increase," Mr Blundell said.
"This is just the start of another wave of victims. The first wave was the miners, people working with these products in the building industry was the second wave, and the third wave are the wives and children inadvertently exposed in the domestic setting."
Ms Watterson, who has two sons aged 13 and 16, has had two doses of chemotherapy since being diagnosed with the cancer, caused by asbestos, in August.
She had been healthy before she began struggling to breathe in June.
"I was really stunned when they told me – I didn't know what to think," Ms Watterson, of Arundel, said.
She remembers her father storing sheets of fibro under their home, and she and her brother and sister playing hide-and-seek under there.
"We played with everything. We used to roll marbles down the fibro."
Lawyer Carl Hughes, of Slater and Gordon, said about 10 per cent of asbestos cases he dealt with involved women who contracted asbestosis or mesothelioma after handling their husbands' work clothes.
Brisbane mother-of-two Rita Charlton, 63, is paying the price for being a good wife back in the 1960s and '70s.
When her husband, Michael, would come home from work covered in dust, Mrs Charlton would sweep up whatever he trailed into the house and pop his clothes in the wash.
Today Mrs Charlton has asbestosis, cancer of the right lung and suspected mesothelioma – believed to be from asbestos fibres carried on her husband's work clothes.
"I always shook things out and I guess I breathed it in," she said.
Slater and Gordon is seeking compensation for Mrs Charlton from companies that employed Mr Hughes.
Utica businessman Mancuso indicted
SYRACUSE —
A 45-year-old Utica businessman previously convicted of illegal asbestos removal faces up to 55 years in federal prison after being indicted Thursday for a second time on charges he violated the federal Clean Air law.
Paul Mancuso also was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, violate the federal Superfund Act and commit mail fraud, said U.S. Attorney Andrew Baxter.
Indicted on the same charges were Mancuso's 70-year-old father Lester and his brother Steven, 37, also both from Utica.
The charges involve illegal asbestos removal at numerous locations throughout Upstate New York, Baxter said.
Another brother, Ronald, pleaded guilty earlier this month in federal court to conspiracy to violate the Superfund Act. Among other things, Ronald Mancuso admitted illegally dumping asbestos on the sides of roads.
Paul Mancuso was convicted in 2003 of illegal asbestos removal and disposal. In 2004, he was convicted of insurance fraud related to his prior asbestos business.
As a result of Paul Mancuso's earlier convictions, he was prohibited from engaging, directly or indirectly, in any asbestos abatement work and associating with anyone who was engaged in any violations of law, Baxter said.
The indictment charged that Paul Mancuso set up companies in the names of relatives and associates to hide his continued involvement. He and his father then engaged in numerous asbestos projects that contaminated various businesses and homes, and, on multiple occasions, dumped asbestos from removal jobs by the sides of roads.
Steven Mancuso, a lawyer, was charged with helping his family engage in illegal activity by preparing false and fraudulent documents to make it appear that their work was legal and they were entitled to payment, Baxter said.
If convicted, Paul Mancuso faces a maximum penalty of 55 years and a fine up to $2.75 million. Lester Mancuso could be sentenced to 23 years in jail and fined as much as $1.25 million.
Steven Mancuso faces up to five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. Ronald Mancuso faces up to three years in jail and a fine up to $250,000.
The names of the defendants' attorneys were not immediately available.
Asbestos causes lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma. The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.
A 45-year-old Utica businessman previously convicted of illegal asbestos removal faces up to 55 years in federal prison after being indicted Thursday for a second time on charges he violated the federal Clean Air law.
Paul Mancuso also was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, violate the federal Superfund Act and commit mail fraud, said U.S. Attorney Andrew Baxter.
Indicted on the same charges were Mancuso's 70-year-old father Lester and his brother Steven, 37, also both from Utica.
The charges involve illegal asbestos removal at numerous locations throughout Upstate New York, Baxter said.
Another brother, Ronald, pleaded guilty earlier this month in federal court to conspiracy to violate the Superfund Act. Among other things, Ronald Mancuso admitted illegally dumping asbestos on the sides of roads.
Paul Mancuso was convicted in 2003 of illegal asbestos removal and disposal. In 2004, he was convicted of insurance fraud related to his prior asbestos business.
As a result of Paul Mancuso's earlier convictions, he was prohibited from engaging, directly or indirectly, in any asbestos abatement work and associating with anyone who was engaged in any violations of law, Baxter said.
The indictment charged that Paul Mancuso set up companies in the names of relatives and associates to hide his continued involvement. He and his father then engaged in numerous asbestos projects that contaminated various businesses and homes, and, on multiple occasions, dumped asbestos from removal jobs by the sides of roads.
Steven Mancuso, a lawyer, was charged with helping his family engage in illegal activity by preparing false and fraudulent documents to make it appear that their work was legal and they were entitled to payment, Baxter said.
If convicted, Paul Mancuso faces a maximum penalty of 55 years and a fine up to $2.75 million. Lester Mancuso could be sentenced to 23 years in jail and fined as much as $1.25 million.
Steven Mancuso faces up to five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. Ronald Mancuso faces up to three years in jail and a fine up to $250,000.
The names of the defendants' attorneys were not immediately available.
Asbestos causes lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma. The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.
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