ELR Citation: ELR 21353
No(s). 93-2573 (7th Cir. Jul 6, 1994)

The court holds that the government need not prove that a business and its owner knew about the permit requirements of §3008(d)(2)(A) of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) in order to convict them of unlawfully storing hazardous waste without a permit and unlawfully disposing of hazardous waste. The plain language of the statute makes clear that Congress purposefully included "knowingly" in §3008(d)(2) and subsections (2)(B) and (2)(C) but omitted it from subsection (2)(A). Having "knowingly" apply to subsection (2)(A) would render its use in subsections (2)(B) and (2)(C) mere surplusage. Also, the U.S. Supreme Court noted in an analogous case that where knowledge of the violative conduct was required and ignorance of the law no excuse, knowledge of the regulation was not required. Moreover, five other federal circuit courts have held that knowledge of RCRA's permit requirement is not an element of a §3008(d)(2)(A) violation. The court rejects defendants' challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence.

Counsel for Plaintiff
Matthew L. Jacobs
Kirkpatrick & Lockhart
1800 M St. NW, Washington DC 20036
(202) 778-9000

Counsel for Defendants
Robert J. Lerner
Perry, Lerner & Quindel
823 N. Cass St., Milwaukee WI 53202
(414) 272-7400

Before Manion and Rovner, JJ.: