Charging Big Oil Companies & CEOs with Reckless Endangerment
Public Citizen News / November-December 2024
By Anna Rosenfeld
This article appeared in the Nov/Dec 2024 edition of Public Citizen News. Download the full edition here.
Top leaders in the fossil fuel industry could face legal consequences for their role in accelerating climate change and weather-related disasters in New York, according to a recent jointly published memo by Public Citizen and Fair and Just Prosecution. The memo laid out a legal strategy for prosecutors to charge the major fossil fuel companies – Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Occidental, and ConocoPhillips – with reckless endangerment in the first and second degrees, a criminal offense in New York state.
The memo highlights recent discoveries that major oil companies and their CEOs have long been aware of the severe risks posed by burning fossil fuels but intentionally deceived the public about the deadliness of their conduct so as not to lower their profits or disrupt their business models. The report suggests that this willful neglect of the risk that their conduct would hurt people could amount to criminal reckless endangerment, laying the groundwork for potential legal actions.
Internal documents from Exxon, Shell, and other cited companies show that top leaders were made aware of the “catastrophic” dangers of fossil fuel emissions and ignored pleas from experts to make necessary changes to their business models. In 1981, Exxon’s research manager wrote a memo stating, “it is distinctly possible that [Exxon’s projected emissions] scenario will later produce effects which will indeed be catastrophic (at least for a substantial fraction of the earth’s population).”
Instead of acting responsibly based on the warnings from their own scientists, the major fossil fuel companies spent time, money, and resources into discrediting climate science and lobbying against climate action. The memo demonstrates an active effort to deceive the general public about the deadliness of the fossil fuel industry, placing billions of people at risk.
The specific charge Public Citizen’s memo outlines is reckless endangerment: when a person or entity acts in a way that puts others at risk of serious injury or death, despite knowing the dangers. The central question asked in the memo is how to charge corporations criminally for this type of climate-related damage.
The memo also opens up the opportunity to reframe how prosecutors think about public safety. One New York official, State Assembly Member Emily Gallagher stated, “We rarely include corporate crimes in our ‘tough on crime’ rhetoric and public safety strategies, but that’s the crime truly threatening our communities. Because of Big Oil, so-called ‘one-in-1,000 year’ storms are becoming regular occurrences, and these dangers are only getting worse. These companies are endangering my constituents, and I believe New York prosecutors should act accordingly.”
It is unusual for executives to be held responsible criminally for the illegal actions of the companies they head, making it notable that Public Citizen is calling for criminal investigations of Big Oil CEOs and executives. Especially as the climate crisis worsens and more and more New Yorkers feel its effects, this push to hold individuals accountable for their part is gaining momentum.
In the past few years, New York has been hit with deadly storms, hurricanes, floods, and heatwaves; thousands of lives have been lost and millions more impacted. There is an urgent need for legal action to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for the harm that they have directly caused.
There has been a positive response to this memo among New York elected officials, who have sought new and creative strategies for combating climate change. Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso responded to Public Citizen’s memo, stating, “The findings in this memo are clear—fossil fuel companies have knowingly put New Yorkers’ lives at risk …. This is more than an environmental issue, it is a matter of public safety and equity across our borough, and those responsible for perpetuating the climate crisis in the pursuit of profit should be held accountable.” City Council Member Sandy Nurse said, “Big Oil’s endless pursuit of profits has come at the cost of our climate and communities.… It’s time to redefine public safety and hold the corporations responsible for these injustices accountable. Protecting the future sustainability of our city means that we can’t allow companies to put short-term gains over our long-term well-being.”
Though legal questions remain regarding how to approach New York’s reckless endangerment law in the context of climate-related conduct, the need for legal action is urgent. The memo outlines the analysis needed to get started.
“Big Oil’s conduct was not just immoral. It was criminal,” said Aaron Regunberg, senior policy counsel with Public Citizen’s Climate Program. “Reckless endangerment occurs when someone engages in reckless conduct that risks injuring or killing another person. That’s exactly what these companies and their CEOs have done by knowingly creating the climate crisis that is causing extreme—and extremely dangerous—weather events. They’ve violated New York law. Prosecutors should act accordingly.”