Environmental Law
Ex-EPA Chief Not Liable for Clean Air Assurances After 9/11
Posted Apr 22, 2008, 10:02 am CST
By Molly McDonough
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled today that former EPA head Christine Todd Whitman cannot be held liable for saying that the air near the collapsed World Trade Center site was safe to breathe after the 9/11 attacks.
Whitman made the reassuring remarks after getting conflicting information and her own reassurances from the White House, the court found (PDF).
The panel further held that legal remedies aren't always available for instances of deficient government performance, the Associated Press reported.
Residents and workers in lower Manhattan and Brooklyn sued the then-EPA chief, arguing they were exposed to hazardous dust and debris after the twin towers fell.