‘The law is clear’: New York officials back Memo with criminal charges against big oil companies

Several New York city and state elected officials endorsed a memo released Thursday outlining how New York City prosecutors could charge major fossil fuel companies and their CEOs with reckless endangerment for knowingly contributing to the climate crisis , which has led to deadly, destructive storms like Sandy and Ida.

The memo, published by Public Citizen and Fair and Just Prosecution, argues that Big Oil’s reckless endangerment case is strong enough for New York prosecutors to open an investigation.

“Big Oil’s behavior was not just immoral, it was criminal,” Aaron Regunberg, senior policy adviser at Public Citizen’s Climate Program, said in a statement. “Reckless endangerment occurs when someone engages in reckless behavior that creates a risk of injuring or killing another person. That’s exactly what these companies and their CEOs have done, knowingly creating the climate crisis that is causing extreme – and extremely dangerous – weather events.”

“The findings in this memo are clear – fossil fuel companies knowingly put the lives of New Yorkers at risk.”

Hurricane Ida in 2021, for example, damaged 3.3% of buildings in New York City and killed more than a dozen people when it dumped nine inches of rain in less than 24 hours. Nearly a decade earlier, Superstorm Sandy killed 44 city residents, damaged nearly 70,000 homes and temporarily displaced thousands.

“Hurricane Sandy destroyed my home,” said Rachel Rivera of New York Communities for Change. “My family deserves justice. This disaster didn’t just happen – it was done to us by oil and gas companies. They made trillions of dollars while we lost so much.”

The memo names ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Occidental, BHP and Peabody, and possibly some of their CEOs, as possible defendants. These companies have accounted for 15.37% of all industrial-era climate pollution since 1965, the year the industry became “undoubtedly aware” that oil, gas and coal were heating the planet. Even earlier, at a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the U.S. oil industry in 1959, Edward Teller warned guests that a 10% increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide could raise temperatures so much that “New York would be flooded.”

Yet the fossil fuel industry and its executives continue to promote climate-warming products and spread misinformation about the harm they cause, delaying action that could have prevented or mitigated storms like Sandy and Ida.

“If I were to commit a crime like this against a company, I can bet I would be prosecuted,” Rivera said. “So why shouldn’t they be held accountable? Isn’t that why we have a criminal justice system?”

Amy Fettig, co-executive director of Fair and Just Prosecution, said bringing charges against the major fossil fuel companies would represent an important reassessment of the importance of public safety.

“We are spending millions of dollars and using violent force to crack down on petty crimes like fare evasion while big oil companies and their billionaire CEOs continue to accelerate a climate crisis that is actively putting residents in real, concrete danger,” Fettig said .

Several New York elected officials have adopted this strategy. The memo received statements of support from New York Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, New York State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, New York State Assembly Member Emily Gallagher, and New York State Assembly Member Sandy Nurse of the New York City Council, and New Carmen De La Rosa, member of the York City Council.

“We rarely include white-collar crime in our rhetoric and public safety strategies, but this is the crime that truly threatens our communities,” Gallagher said. “Because of the big oil companies, so-called once-in-1,000-year storms are a regular occurrence, and these dangers are getting worse. These companies are endangering my constituents, and I believe New York prosecutors should act accordingly.”

Reynoso added: “The findings in this memo are clear – fossil fuel companies have knowingly put the lives of New Yorkers at risk.”

He continued: “By intentionally ignoring and concealing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with their products, these companies have contributed to a dramatic increase in extreme weather events that are hitting Brooklyn’s most vulnerable populations the hardest. This is more than just an environmental issue, an issue of public safety and justice throughout our county, and those responsible for perpetuating the climate crisis for profit should be held accountable.”

Fossil Free Media’s Jamie Henn welcomed the state and city leaders’ words.

“WHOA! New York officials demand that Big Oil be ‘prosecuted’ over climate disasters,” Henn wrote on social media. “They say the oil companies have committed ‘reckless endangerment’ by fueling the climate crisis and lying. It’s time to #MakePollutersPay.”

The latest memo is part of a broader movement to hold the fossil fuel industry legally accountable for climate damage. Henn is also advocating for legislation that would require planet-warming companies to pay into a disaster relief and climate adaptation fund. Vermont became the first state to pass such a Climate Superfund Act in May, and a similar proposal in New York is awaiting Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature.

Public Citizen is also developing a broader strategy to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable. In an earlier memo, the watchdog group explained how local and state authorities could accuse oil, gas and coal companies of “climate murder.”

“We are building the case to prosecute big oil, brick by brick,” Public Citizen climate advisor Clara Vondrich wrote on social media about the latest effort. “Here is the first ‘charge memo’ that lays out the case for why criminal charges of ‘reckless endangerment’ were filed and won.” The law is clear. Barriers are only political.

While Thursday’s memo focuses on New York, Public Citizen said it could be relevant to any place experiencing climate disasters that has reckless endangerment laws in place.

“This discussion is the starting point for every prosecutor who wants to build a case to protect their constituents from climate harms that threaten public safety in communities across the country,” the memo’s authors wrote.