United States v. Weitzenhoff
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
35 F.3d 1275 (1994)
Michael Weitzenhoff and Thomas Mariana (defendants) managed a sewage treatment plant near a popular Oahu beach, operating under a permit limiting the pollutants it could discharge. Instead of hauling away waste activated sludge as normal, they directed employees to dump 436,000 pounds of it directly into the ocean over 40 separate occasions, without recording or reporting the discharges, and then conspired to cover it up. They were charged in a 31-count indictment under the Clean Water Act and convicted on six counts, and appealed, arguing the "knowingly" element required proof they knew their specific conduct violated the permit's legal requirements.
Whether criminal sanctions under the Clean Water Act may be imposed on someone who knowingly engages in conduct that violates the statute or a permit condition, even if he lacked specific knowledge that his conduct violated the permit's requirements.