  
2/12/2026
WT Staff
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Thursday, February 12, 2026 1256 pm EST
CWA CrimeBox
Environmental Crimes Historic Conviction: Fiscal Year 2014; Case ID# CR_2578 (Ohio)
Oilfield worker convicted for deliberate discharge of oily brine in Lake Erie drainage basin
One of 867 Criminal Prosecutions under the Clean Water Act (from 1989-2024)
October 17, 2013 "Dumping toxic substances like brine into sewers and rivers can be extremely harmful to the environment and a real threat to Ohio families. We will continue to work with our task force partners to enforce environmental protection laws and hold violators accountable."
- Mike DeWine, 70th Governor of Ohio (formerly Attorney General of Ohio)
The Defendant in this case was an employee of an oil and gas exploration company operating in northeast Ohio, north of the state height of land divide, where surface water collects and feeds Lake Erie, the primary drinking water source for 12 million people.
Two felony charges were brought to bear on the 45-yr old gas well driller for the deliberate discharge of industrial process water, a brine solution heavily contaminated with oil. The defendant caused the wastewater to enter a tributary of the Chagrin River, a navigable waterway favored by kayakers.
Federal District Court in Northern Ohio received bills of information showing the defendant knowingly deposited well site wastewater into storm drains. The hazardous spills took place in 2008, according to evidence presented to the court. Rather than transport the wastewater for proper disposal or treatment to remove the contaminants, the defendant allowed untreated brine to enter stormwater collection systems in Mayfield Heights and Highland Heights, with outfalls into Beecher Brook.
According to the case briefing notes, "Brine is water with a high quantity of salt dissolved into it and is used during the drilling phase of the well installation. It must be handled and disposed of properly because of the toxicity of brine."
"Clean, fresh water is one of our greatest resource in Northern Ohio," declared Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio. "We must and will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute cases in which people pollute Ohio's streams, rivers and lakes."
Federal Fines: $2,000; Probation: 24 months
This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Brad J. Beeson, investigated by members of the Northeast Ohio Environmental Crimes Task Force, including the US EPA Criminal Investigation Division, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation, and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
See last week's CWA CrimeBox here, An otherwise diligent company earned a criminal record for a single negligent violation of the CWA, sentenced to fines and restitution of $150,000
CWA CrimeBox briefs are compiled from EPA Criminal Enforcement records.
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