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Rochester Contractor Convicted of Asbestos Crimes
Keith Gordon-Smith, the owner of Gordon-Smith Contracting, Inc., has been convicted of eight counts of knowingly violating the Clean Air Act asbestos work practice standards. The jury also found him guilty of making false statements to an OSHA inspector to cover up the violations.
The crimes took place at a demolition site in Rochester, where Gordon-Smith’s workers were exposed to toxic asbestos and lied about it to OSHA inspectors. The workers were not wearing protective clothing and were exposed to high levels of asbestos.
Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division, said, ‘Gordon-Smith knowingly exposed workers and public areas to the toxic air pollutant asbestos. The verdict should send a strong message to those in the asbestos abatement industry. We have zero tolerance for violations of the Clean Air Act asbestos work practice standards.’
The jury convicted Gordon-Smith of two counts of causing GSCI workers to violate asbestos work practice standards at the west wing of the Genesee Hospital complex. The west wing was scheduled to be demolished in summer 2009. The first violations took place between January and May 2007, when Gordon-Smith ordered GSCI workers to tear out copper pipes, ceiling tiles and scrap metal from the west wing, a six-story structure that contained over 70,000 square feet of asbestos.
Gordon-Smith had a contract with the site owner that provided him with 50 percent of the salvage value of all copper pipe and scrap metal. When the workers removed the pipes and scrap metal, they were repeatedly exposed to asbestos, described to the jurors as falling on them ‘like snow.’
The jury convicted Gordon-Smith and his company of making false statements to an OSHA inspector who had received complaints from GSCI workers. The OSHA inspector visited the site three times in September and October 2007, and on each occasion Gordon-Smith lied and told her that GSCI workers had not removed any copper pipes or other materials from the west wing.
The jury also convicted Gordon-Smith and his company of causing GSCI workers to illegally remove and dispose of asbestos during the actual asbestos abatement at the west wing, from May 2007 until February 2009. The asbestos was allowed to flow from upper floors through drains and holes in containment. Large amounts of asbestos were left hidden in the west wing and were never disposed off-site at an EPA-approved site.
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Key Facts
- State: Federal
- Category: Environmental Crimes|Public Health
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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