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Oilfield waste dumping plea scheduled
CLEVELAND
The man accused of dumping oil-field waste into a Mahoning River tributary at the direction of his boss is scheduled for a change-of-plea hearing in federal court at 9:30 a.m. Aug. 29.
Michael P. Guesman, 34, of Cortland, pleaded innocent in March to violating the Clean Water Act.
His boss, Ben Lupo, 62, of Poland, and Lupo’s company, Hardrock Excavating LLC, which was in the oil and gas drilling industry waste storage, treatment and disposal business, also pleaded innocent to the same charge.
A federal grand jury indicted Lupo, Hardrock and Guesman in February after a criminal investigation by state and federal regulators found Lupo had directed Guesman to dump a mixture of brine and oil-based drilling mud down a storm drain after dark.
The indictment said the deliberate illegal discharges occurred “on numerous occasions” between Nov. 1, 2012, and Jan. 31, 2013.
The investigation was triggered by a Jan. 31 discharge that resulted in a massive cleanup that used specialized contractors and cost more than $1 million.
Guesman was ordered to discharge wastewater into the storm drain from the company’s Salt Springs Road location at least 20 times, according to a witness statement summarized in an affidavit in support of the indictment.
Guesman will appear before U.S. District Judge Donald C. Nugent for the change-of-plea hearing.
Lupo and Hardrock are scheduled for a 9:30 a.m. Sept. 16 pretrial conference before Judge Nugent.
Michael Tobin, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, declined to comment on whether Guesman has signed a plea agreement with the U.S. attorney; whether Guesman is expected to plead guilty as charged, or to a lesser offense; what the U.S. attorney’s sentencing recommendation would be if he pleads guilty; and whether Guesman will have to testify against his co-defendants, upon the U.S. attorney’s request, under any plea deal.
However, David Betras, a Canfield lawyer who practices criminal law in federal courts but is not representing any party in the brine-dumping case, said it is likely that Guesman already has signed a plea agreement with the U.S. attorney, with the U.S. attorney agreeing to recommend leniency. However, Betras said the actual sentence that would follow a guilty plea would be up to the judge.
Under a plea agreement, Guesman may have to testify against Lupo and Hardrock in a trial if he’s asked to do so by the U.S. attorney, who is the federal prosecutor, Betras said.
“The first one in” who pleads guilty in such a case often becomes a potential government witness against co-defendants, Betras said.
“If this guy’s going to turn state’s evidence against him, it certainly turns up the pressure” on Lupo and Hardrock to plead guilty and not go on trial, Betras said.
Defendants who accept responsibility by pleading guilty get favorable consideration for doing so in a complex formula set forth in federal sentencing guidelines.
Violation of the Clean Water Act could bring a sentence ranging from probation to up to three years in prison, followed by a year of supervised release, and a fine up to $250,000.
Guesman is represented by Carolyn M. Kucharski, a federal public defender in Cleveland, who declined to comment or release any information “until there is a change of plea.”
The case is being prosecuted by Brad J. Beeson, an assistant U.S. attorney.