Published:
Senate Judiciary Hears Exxon Valdez Victim on Spill Disaster Misconduct
CORDOVA, Alaska, July 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A native fisherman
fromAlaska, Ms. Osa Schultz, will testify at a Senate Judiciary Committee
hearing on the devastating impact the Exxon Valdez oil spill continues to have
on her family, her business and her community. The hearing, "Courting Big
Business: The Supreme Court's Recent Decisions on Corporate Misconduct and
Laws Regulating Corporations," will be held on Wednesday July 23 at 10:00 AM
in Room 226 of the Senate Dirksen Office Building.
According to a press release issued by Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy
(D-Vt.), the hearing will review how recent decisions by the Supreme Court
have shielded corporations engaged in misconduct, including last month's
decision in Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker. For more information, click here:
http://leahy.senate.gov/press/200807/071508c.html
The Committee invited Ms. Schultz to testify as a representative of the
32,000 plaintiffs in Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker, a 20-year fight for punitive
damages over the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the worst spill disaster in American
history. On June 25, the Supreme Court ruled against the plaintiffs as well
as the decisions of the original jury in the case, which awarded the fishermen
$5 billion in punitive damages, and the Ninth Circuit, which reduced the award
to $2.5 billion. The Court slashed the award to $507 million, amounting to
approximately $12,000 per plaintiff: pennies compared to the enormous losses
incurred since the spill.
"The recent decision by the United States Supreme Court trumps the rights
of the individual for the benefit of bottom line corporate interests,
specifically for the largest corporation in the world which continues to reap
record profits," said Osa Schultz.
Osa Schultz is part of a long-timeAlaska fishing family that spans
several generations. At the hearing on Wednesday, she will testify to how the
Exxon Valdez oil spill destroyed her business and her community, and continues
to haunt the people, the economy and the climate of Prince William Sound. She
is a spokesperson of The Whole Truth Campaign. Joining her at the hearing on
Wednesday will be Whole Truth representatives Travis Vlasoff, director at the
Tatitlek Corporation, and Jennifer Gibbins, Executive Director of Prince
William Soundkeeper.
ABOUT THE WHOLE TRUTH
The Whole Truth campaign is supported by leadingAlaska advocacy
organizations Prince William Soundkeeper and Cordova District Fishermen
United. Native and commercial fishermen are available to speak to their
direct personal experiences as victims of the fall-out of the Exxon Valdez Oil
Spill. To interview Osa Schultz and/or Travis Vlasoff and Jennifer Gibbins,
contact Aric Caplan at 301-998-6592 or go to www.wholetruth.net.
Aric Caplan | Phone: 301/998-6592
aric@caplancommunications.com
SOURCE The Whole Truth
Copyright © 2009, PRNewswire
Copyright © 2009, NewsBlaze,
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