SANTA ANA, Calif. — An oil company on Thursday pleaded guilty in federal court to negligently discharging crude off the Southern California coast when its underwater pipeline ruptured last year, a spill that closed miles of shoreline and shuttered fisheries.
“Amplify unequivocally hit the snooze button. They knew they had a leak. Their leak detection system detected a leak,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “Over and over, they kept ignoring it. That is criminal and that is why they’ve been charged.” The company will also be placed on 12 months of probation and make changes designed to avoid future spills, including increased inspections and technology to detect leaks, Bonta said.
In federal court in Santa Ana, Amplify and its subsidiaries each pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor charge on Thursday, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles. The plea comes after the companies agreed with federal prosecutors to pay a $7 million fine and nearly $6 million in expenses incurred by agencies including the U.S. Coast Guard.